The Air That I Breathe
by Queen Gwenyvere
Summary: ~NOW COMPLETE~ This is the (AU) story of Max and Logan, their new marriage, and the pregnancy and birth of their first child. Do they get a happy ever after, or just a happy ever now? Please read and review!
1. The Air That I Breathe

Author's Note: This is the first in what I hope to be a long, novel length series titled "The Air That I Breathe". That is also the name of this first chapter. I don't own any of it, as all the "Dark Angel" characters belong to Mr. Titanic and company. Nor do I own the song(s) that will be featured heretofore. "The Air That I Breathe" can be found on Patti Lupone's album "Matters of the Heart"...it belongs to whomever wrote it. I'm just borrowing everything, for my own enjoyment and for the enjoyment of others. I get no recompense from it. Please R&R if you want me to continue. Feedback and criticism (as long as it is constructive) is craved. Now.... without further ado...on with the show.  
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*If I could make a wish  
I think I'd pass  
Can't think of anything I need*  
  
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here this evening..."  
  
It was nighttime in the city. The sky was full of starlight, twinkling orbs that danced for the lovers. The light of the full moon streamed in through the large windows, luminous and brilliant, creating an eerie beauty along with the candlelight. Although small, the assembled crowd was made up of those who were loved by the couple before them. It was a blessed and joyous occasion.  
  
*No cigarettes  
No sleep  
No light  
No sound  
Nothing to eat, no books to read*  
  
The city outside the windows was quiet, newly peaceful. It had taken the world a long time to get to this point. With the help of the two soon-to-be-married people, their friends and comrades, and others like them, in addition to a newly reformed government, the country was slowly emerging from the Second Great Depression. There was less hunger, disease, and poverty, fewer squatters in ramshackle buildings. Martial law had been abolished and a sense of normalcy few could remember was slowly sweeping its way across the country.  
  
*Making love with you  
Has left me peaceful, warm, and tired  
What more could I ask  
There's nothing left to be desired*  
  
Standing on the polished hardwood floors, framed by an arch of flowers and some candlelight, the lovers stood in profile. The groom, tall and handsome, with rugged features and constantly tousled hair, was dressed in a tuxedo, a red rose in his lapel, and shiny shoes on his feet. His glasses glinted in the candlelight, reflecting the light shining from his eyes. His bride, a young, dark beauty, was dressed in a simple white floor length gown, empire cut with a scooped neck and no sleeves. Her hair was piled high atop her crown, accented by the glinting tiara she wore in her hair. Wispy strands fell delicately around her face and neck, concealing the slight scar she had from a year old tattoo removal. Her hands were clasped in those of her soon-to-be husband's, and it was obvious they only had eyes for each other.  
  
*Peace came upon me   
And it leaves me weak  
Sleep silent angel  
Go to sleep*  
  
"I would now like to ask them to recite their vows. They have chosen to write their own, as sincere and heartfelt expressions of their eternal love and devotion." The minister turned to the groom. "Logan, if you please."  
  
Logan Cale took a deep breath and tried to smile through his nerves. He hated public speaking, ironic, since he was Eyes Only, seen by millions. He remembered the last time he had to give a written speech, at his cousin's wedding. He had screwed it up royally. He said a quick, silent prayer before opening his mouth. "Max Guerva, I love you beyond words. You brought joy and adventure into my life. You gave me back my life, and my legs. From the moment you came crashing through my window you became my inspiration." The assembled chuckled at that, knowing the pair's history. "You made me believe there was still something worth fighting for. I can't imagine how I ever lived not knowing you." He turned to Bling, his best man, for the ring. Bling wanted to pretend he has misplaced it, but he recanted at the last moment, not wanting to cause Logan any additional unnecessary panic. Turning back to his shining bride, Logan continued. "This ring is a symbol of my everlasting love and devotion. From this moment on, I promise to love you, honor you, cherish you, respect you, comfort you, and care for you. I promise to cook for you, and not make a big deal when you go out for a ride on your bike. I promise not to hide anything from you. From this moment on, and as long as we both shall live, Max Guerva, I thee wed." Blinking back tears, Logan slipped the ring on Max's finger, fighting the urge to take her in his arms and kiss her that moment. The time for that would come.  
  
*Sometimes  
All I need is the air that I breathe   
And to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Yes to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh*   
  
Max smiled widely as she felt the cool ring slide onto her finger. It gleamed in the soft light. Still smiling, Max raised her head, fighting back tears of her own, and began. "Logan Cale, I love you more than I thought I could ever love anyone. You have brought peace and calm into my life. From the moment I came crashing into your life, you gave me something to believe in. You made me believe in myself, and you taught me what love is. You made me believe there were things still worth fighting for in a world that had only been cold and unforgiving to me." She turned to one of her maids of honor, Original Cindy, who eagerly turned over the ring. She and Kendra, who was holding Max's bouquet, exchanged devilish glances, glad their boo had finally admitted she was in love with Ex Roller Boy. As Max slid the ring onto Logan's finger, she said, "This ring is a symbol of my everlasting love and affection. From this moment on, I promise to love you, honor you, cherish you, respect you, comfort you, and care for you. I promise to be less stubborn and thick headed, and more open to compromise. I promise not to hide anything from you. From this moment on, and as long as we both shall live, Logan Cale, I thee wed." Tears glistened in her eyes and a stray escaped down her cheek. Logan reached out with his other hand and brushed it away with his thumb.  
  
*Making love with you  
Has left me peaceful, warm, and tired  
What more could I ask  
There's nothing left to be desired*  
  
The minister grinned, "Now that Logan and Max have made their vows of love and devotion to each other, in the sight of God and witnesses, it is my pleasure to present to you, for the first time, by the power vested in my, Mr. Logan Cale and Mrs. Maxine Guerva-Cale." They looked at him expectantly and he started. "Oh yes, how foolish of me." He smiled. "You may kiss the bride."  
  
*Peace came upon me   
And it leaves me weak  
Sleep silent angel  
Go to sleep*  
  
Beaming, Max and Logan stepped forward a fraction of an inch, bringing them closer to each other. Still holding hands, Logan leaned down slightly to kiss his bride, relishing the look of sweet anticipation on her face as she rose on tiptoe to meet him. As their lips touched, at first soft and gentle, but then more passionately, and full of joy, their arms enveloped each other. They were vaguely aware as the crowd of well-wishers rose to their feet in thunderous applause. For at this moment, there was no one but Max and Logan.  
  
*Sometimes  
All I need is the air that I breathe   
And to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Yes to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh*   
  
As they broke apart, more than a bit reluctantly, and walked down the short aisle arm and arm, they knew that a new world was opening up for them. It was a new and mysterious world, undoubtedly full of new and exciting (and most likely occasionally dangerous) adventures. For the first time they would face those adventures and that world united, as one, man and wife, never to be parted.  
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Thus endeth part one...are you intrigued? Shall I continue? Please review! If ya like it, I'll post another one tomorrow.  



	2. Just She and I Together, Like It Was Mea...

Author's Notes: Takes place immediately after "The Air That I Breathe"...later, at the reception. This consists mostly of a flashback. I had to let you guys know how Max and Logan finally committed to each other right? And how they can all be so dog-oned happy. What about Manticore? Hehehe...Read and find out. The first song is the same as the last song, and it's by Sarah McLachlan off the "Toy Story 2" Soundtrack...It belongs to Disney and Randy Newman. The Dark Angel characters aren't mine either. They belong to James "I'm The Kind of the World" Cameron and Company. Please R&R. I'll try to get part three up by the end of the weekend. I already have this thing arced, beginning to end. Hehehe...that'll keep ya coming back for more. :) And now...on with our show...  
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* When somebody loves me  
Everything is beautiful  
Every hour we spend together lives  
Within my heart*  
  
"To the newly weds!" Bling raised his glass in a simple, joyful, elegant toast to his friends. They smiled gratefully as their friends erupted into thunderous applause.  
  
"About damn time!" Original Cindy said through her laughter.  
  
Max and Logan smiled at their friends and exchanged a quick kiss. They had changed out of their wedding attire and into clothes that were slightly more casual. Logan was wearing a tailored black suit, light shirt, and matching silk tie. His new bride had taken her hair down, and was wearing a cream colored suit, and a shirt underneath of the same color and material as Logan's tie.   
  
*And when she was sad  
I was there to dry her tears  
And when she was happy  
So was I  
When she loved me*  
  
Finally breaking apart, ending their kiss, max and Logan stood before their guests as he addressed them. "Thank you all so much for sharing this special evening with us. There's no one we'd rather spend it with."  
  
"Except just each other," Kendra said, piping up. Everyone laughed.  
  
Max smiled at her friend, "Okay everybody, let's eat."  
  
Bling raised an eyebrow, "Who cooked?"  
  
Max folded her arms across her chest in mock annoyance, "You trying to say something bad 'bout my cookin' boy?"  
  
Bling grinned, wisely staying silent.  
  
Logan chuckled and squeezed Max's hand. "Not to fear; I did the cooking."  
  
Herbal cleared his throat, "Not to disrespect ya man, but I don't care who did the cooking. I just want to eat it. Had me a busy day t'day at the office."  
  
Sketchy, Herbal, Cindy, and Max glared at Normal, who appeared typically indifferent. He shrugged, folding his arms across his chest and avoiding their eyes, "It's not my fault half the city had packages they wanted delivered."  
  
Cindy rolled her eyes and muttered, "All day, all I heard was 'bip freakin' bip.'" Sketchy and Herbal chuckled and gave each other low fives behind her back.  
  
"If you please, there's a buffet table in the dining room," Logan said, pointing. The table was laid out with the most elaborate spread many of them had ever seen.  
  
"You cooked *all that?*" Kendra asked, stupefied.  
  
Max shook her head, "He got out the tried and true Cale family recipes and hired chefs to make 'em." Logan shot her a look that said, "Thanks for blowing my secret." She smiled and kissed his cheek before following Cindy and Kendra towards the dining room.  
  
*Through the summer and the fall  
We had each other that was all  
Just she and I together  
Like it was meant to be*  
  
As their friends piled their plates high with the lavish food, Logan came up behind his new bride and wrapped his arms around her waist, nuzzling her neck. She brought one arms up to cradle his head while resting the other atop one of his arms, entwining their fingers. "Enjoying the evening Mrs. Cale?" he asked, a hint of mischief in his voice,  
  
She smiled and turned her head to lightly kiss his temple. "Yes, Mr. Cale, thank you."  
  
"Thank *you*," he whispered. "You've no idea how happy you made me tonight when you spoke those vows."  
  
"I never thought it could be this perfect," Max whispered, giving Logan butterfly kisses on the cheek.  
  
*And when she was lonely  
I was there to comfort her  
And I knew that she loved me*  
  
"Hey Boo!" Original Cindy called from the end of the buffet table. "Are you gonna eat or are you two gonna work on the foreplay all night?"  
  
Max rolled her eyes and reluctantly pulled out of Logan's arms, grabbing two plates and joining Kendra and Cindy at the table. Logan watched her every move, unable to control the smile on his face. Bling handed him another glass of champagne, "You're a lucky man, my friend."  
  
Logan sipped his champagne, "I really am." He knew he was, especially since he knew how close they had come to nearly losing it all.  
  
******************************  
  
~~18 Months Earlier, Gillette, Wyoming~~  
  
Logan wondered if he was dying. He felt like he was. Every inch of his skin was afire with pain. Blood seeped out of various wounds, mixing with the sweat that wouldn't stop coming. He was strapped to a chair, being pumped full of various nefarious drugs. He had been beaten, drugged, and tortured for days. Or minutes. Or hours. Logan couldn't remember any more. It had taken Lydecker quite a while, and despite numerous deterrents, and Logan's best efforts, the man had tracked down Eyes Only.  
  
Now Lydecker was using him to get to max and the other X-5's. Hence the brutality and pain. As far as Logan could tell, he hadn't broken, he hadn't betrayed them, betrayed her. He might have five years ago, but for some reason, he suddenly had a higher pain tolerance. It might have had something to do with everything he had been through with his legs-the surgery, the therapy, the setbacks. However, he was nearly certain that he could thank max and the large amount of her blood that was coursing through his system.  
  
He knew Max would be planning an attack. She might even be considering a trade, But Logan knew, for the same reasons he had let her go to Canada with Zach all those years ago, that he would rather die than have Max back in Lydecker's hell. He loved her too much to condemn her.   
  
Logan screamed in pain as Lydecker broke one of his fingers. "Tell me where she is, Eyes Only, and this will all be over."  
  
"Go to hell," Logan hissed, spitting bloody saliva in Lydecker's face, trying not to black out from the pain.  
  
Lydecker grabbed Logan's broken finger and twisted it, "Is she worth all this? All this pain? What is she to you?"  
  
Logan squeezed his eyes shut against the waves of dizziness that were crashing over him. "Funny, I was just going to ask you the same questions."  
  
Lydecker backhanded him and turned to a guard, "Break another every half hour until he talks."  
  
Logan's head fell against the chair. "Stay away Max, please," he whispered before losing consciousness.  
  
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"You're not going in there!"  
  
"Like Hell I'm not!"  
  
Zach and Max shot dagger-filled glares at each other. They had been having this fight for three days. First, when she had sent out another Eyes Only hack to summon the other X-5's, praying that Lydecker was no longer monitoring them now that he had Logan. Zach had fought her again when he had discovered where she wanted their sibs to go. Now, he was fighting her again, as he heard her plan.  
  
"I'm not going to let you turn yourself over to the slaughter!"  
  
"Zach, it's the only way I can be sure Logan gets released."  
  
"Leave him. He's not worth it."  
  
"He is to me, damn you!" Max hollered, her eyes flashing like fire. "Look, Zach, I am doing this with or without you." She turned to the other X-5's. "The same goes for you guys. I know you usually think Zach's way is the best way. Most of the time, I don't entirely disagree. Nevertheless, this operation needs to be done my way. No questions. No challenges." She took a deep, steadying breath. "So, are you in, or are you out?"  
  
One by one, her sibs-Tinga, Jace, Jondy, Zane, Johnny and Brin, and several others-stood up. Lydecker had "rehabilitated" Brin true to his word, but with Logan's help, Max had found her and sent her off to the others for de-programming. She smiled with gratitude. Looking hopefully at Zach, her face fell when she saw him look away. Max sighed.  
  
"Okay, let's go over the plans again." She pointed to the Manticore blueprints Logan had obtained shortly before his abduction. "Lydecker probably had Logan here, where he had Zach and Brin. Jondy and Brin, after I go in, wait ten minutes, and then take your teams in through marks Alpha and Delta. Brin, you, Tinga and Johnny will find Logan, eliminate the guards, and get him out through egress Beta or Epsilon. Jondy, take Jace, Zane, and the others to lay charges at points Kappa, Phi, and Omega. Then egress through Gamma and Theta. I will take care of Lydecker. Once everyone is clear, detonate the charges, no matter where you think I am."  
  
Solemnly, her sibs nodded. A few took sidelong glances at Zach, hoping the man who had led hem for so long would swallow this pride and join in what they hoped was their final campaign. But he stood straight and tall, arms crossed, showing no signs of wavering.  
  
"Zach," Max said sadly. "In or out?"  
  
He did not even turn to look at her.  
  
Hiding her tears Max sighed and picked up her cellular phone. She waited for the call to go through and said, "Lemme talk to Lydecker. I've got a proposition for him."  
  
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"Get up Cale! We're going for a little walk."  
  
Logan felt himself being unstrapped. Roughly, the IV was removed from his hand and he was forced to his feet. Too weak to stand on his own, Logan felt his legs go out from underneath him. They guards dragged him down the hallway. Through half closed eyes, Logan saw doors and lights flash by him in a blur. Then he was thrown to the floor, where he lay for sometime, felling the cool cement soothe his painful skin. To his shock, he felt hands on him, soft, gentle hands. Struggling to open his eyes, Logan blinked to bring them into focus. "M-Max?" he rasped through parched lips. "H-how...?"  
  
She smiled and placed a finger on his lips, "Shh, don't talk. Just rest. You're getting out of here. Close your eyes for me, Logan, please." He obeyed and she whirled around, facing Lydecker in a fury. She asked through her unabashed tears, "What did you do to him?"  
  
Logan could not hear Lydecker's answer. Then, his mind snapped into nearly complete alertness. Lydecker! He began to panic. Logan struggled to sit up. "No Max, don't! Please!" He knew she was trading herself for him.  
  
"Take him away," Lydecker commanded.  
  
"No," Max cried. "Just a few more minutes, please!"  
  
"Restrain her, " Lydecker snapped, his disgust audible.  
  
"Max!" Logan screamed as she was dragged away.  
  
She called desperately after him, "Logan! It'll be okay. You'll be okay." She wrenched free of the guards as she watched Logan be dragged away. He was screaming her name. She turned to Lydecker, "I'm not your prisoner."  
  
Lydecker nodded, "You were never my prisoner, Max. None of you was."  
  
"No," she replied bitterly. "We were experiments." Lydecker considered this as he ushered her down a hallway. She glanced at the clock; the mission had gone active.   
  
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Logan heard gunfire and once again was thrown to the floor. He heard the sounds of scuffling and fighting and dragged himself to the nearest wall for safety. Minutes later, he felt a hand touch his face. His eyes, full of hope, flew open. "Max?" To his disappointment, he saw another woman. Unmistakably an X-5.  
  
She seemed relieved he was alive. "Can you walk?" she asked.  
  
He nodded but could not speak. All he could think of was that Max was once again in the jaws of Satan. He felt himself being hoisted to his feet and he forced himself to run along with the team that was, as far as he could tell, led by Brin. She had his arm draped over one of her shoulders. "What about Max?" he croaked.  
  
Brin did not answer. Instead, she led the team down another hallway that was poorly lit. Fortunately, it was also poorly guarded. Before he knew it, Logan felt the cold northwest air hit his face.  
  
He was free  
  
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Meanwhile, on the other side of the compound, Jondy's team was laying explosive charges that would hopefully lay waste to Manticore and free them all from their lives on the run. They would be able to live free of fear, of persecution, of constantly looking over their shoulders. They would finally be able to settle down, achieve some greater sense of normalcy. As she laid another charge, Jondy could not help but think of Max and Logan. They made each other happy, even if they couldn't admit it.   
  
"Jondy!" she heard Tinga call. "We've got company. Two dozen commandos headed our way."  
  
Laying her last charge, Jondy raced to assemble her group. They got into formation, taking fighting stances and preparing their weapons. "Take 'em out!" she commanded. As a unit, they circled and were circled by the commandos. Each one was sizing up their opponents, developing tactical strategies, using logic, just as Lydecker had taught them to do. With a quick nod of her head, Jondy and her siblings leapt into the air, vaulting over the commando's heads, taking them by surprise. They used that element of surprise to take out half a dozen with the first volley of machine gun fire. Then, each took on three or four in hand-to-hand combat. X-5's were not easily matched, but Lydecker's soldiers provided an adequate challenge for them.  
  
Suddenly, someone landed in the midst of their group. Tinga smiled when she saw who it was. "About damn time," she said.  
  
Zach shrugged and shot two commandos, "I figured you guys could sue a little help."  
  
With Zach's added manpower, they were able to finish off the opposing squad in a matter of minutes. Several X-5's were beaten and bruised, but they were victorious. Jondy rounded up her troops, "All right, let's go, egress Theta. Head for the rendezvous point. Take out anyone who comes across your path."   
  
They started down the hallway, but Zach went in the opposite direction. "Zach!" Tinga called after him. "What the hell are you doing?"  
  
"Helping Max!" he called back as he sprinted away, taking several weapons and rounds of ammunition off the bodies of the dead commandos. "Now go!"  
  
Tinga exchanged a look with Jondy before heading for the rendezvous point.  
  
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Lydecker had brought Max up on the roof of Manticore. To Max's surprise, they were admiring the view, the scenic and surprisingly pristine wilderness that shrouded Manticore from the prying eyes of the outside world. Lydecker took a deep breath, "Smell that Max? What do you smell?"  
  
Max sniffed, "Oxygen, Nitrogen, Carbon Monoxide and Dioxide, animal feces, decaying plants, and the fumes from your vehicles." Gotta love the great out doors, she thought wryly.  
  
Lydecker shook his head, "That's not Mother Nature and my trucks you're smelling. It's fear and weakness and human decay. It's why you and your siblings were created."  
  
Max rolled her eyes, "Is that why you brought me up here? To make me feel better about the hell you put us all through every day of our lives for the last twenty some odd years?" She shook her head, "Cuz if it is, I'd rather skip the pep talk and get down to business. What are you going to do to me?"  
  
Lydecker grinned, "You were always one of my favorites Max. You had such potential." He looked her up and down critically. "It's a shame you've wasted it on weakness and emotions."  
  
She folded her arms, "Call me crazy. I like having friends."  
  
Lydecker shook his head, "We can change that." He paused. "You didn't really think I was going to let Cale go free, now did you? Max, now, I taught you better than that."  
  
Stoically, Max stared him down, "No Donald I didn't. That's why I brought back up." She grinned with delight at the look of shock on his face as gunfire sounded from below.  
  
He peered over the edge of the roof. On the ground, he saw five figures darting across the south lawn towards the border. Behind them, to his dismay, Lydecker found a trail of the dead and dying bodies of his men. He whirled to face Max, "What the hell is going on?"  
  
"I brought some family with me," Max said smugly. "They're all here Donald. They were right under your nose and you were too busy gloating to notice." She frowned. "Looks like you have some weakness of your own there, *sir*."  
  
Lydecker's eyes bulged as the grim reality set in. he immediately pulled out his walkie-talkie and frantically began summoning various members of his crew. To his abject dismay, he discovered nearly half of his force had been taken out. Angrily throwing the hand held radio to the rooftop, he with drew his gun and leveled it at Max. "Well, Max, it looks like it's come to this."  
  
She shrugged, "Look's that way. Don't worry, Donald, I'll make it quick. I've fought bigger men than you." Without any more thought, without any more words, Max attacked with all the fury and anger of the last twenty plus years of her life. With the skill he had taught her, Max fought Lydecker hand to hand, calling upon all her training. He was a surprisingly adequate opponent, given his lengthy military history.  
  
The fight was long and tiring, and to Max's initial shock, she and Lydecker took turns gaining the upper hand. Once, he had her pinned to the ground, leveling the gun squarely at her face. They struggled for several minutes before Max got enough momentum to swing her legs up and hit him in the back of the head. He tumbled off her and he leapt to her feet, wiping away the blood and sweat from her eyes. With her speed and agility, she was able to traverse the roof in mere seconds, keeping him on his toes as to where she was. She finally disoriented him and snuck up behind him. Grabbing him by the throat, she slowly applied pressure to his larynx, cutting off his air supply.  
  
"Goodbye *Dad*," she said, her voice full of anger and hate. "Thanks for everything." His eyes closed and she dropped him to the roof deck.  
  
Just then, she heard the sounds of clapping. Whirling around, still in a fighting stance, she saw Zach on the other side of the roof, leaning against an air conditioning vent. "Looks like you didn't need my help after all."  
  
She did not reply.  
  
He held out his hand, "Come on. Let's get out of here before Brin and Jondy blow this place to bits."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Max!" Logan screamed. "We've got to wait for her."  
  
"There's no more time," Zane snapped.  
  
"Zane!" Brin yelled. "Take it easy man, he loves her."  
  
Johnny glanced at his watch, "We gotta do it now, before Lydecker's goons can track us down."  
  
Tinga nodded, "We have to. Jondy, there's no more time."  
  
"No!" Logan pleaded. "Just give her a little more time."  
  
Brin and Jondy exchanged glances. "Zach's in there too," Brin murmured.  
  
Jondy sadly closed her eyes, said a silent prayer, and reached for the trigger.  
  
Logan wept.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Max and Zach raced through the building, avoiding what was left of Lydecker's men. The Manticore compound was a labyrinth and even with their genetically enhanced super powers, Max and Zach still found they were getting lost.  
  
"Which way?" Max asked as they came to another dead end.  
  
Zach paused.  
  
"Zach, we're running out of time!" Max cried. She begged silently that they would find a way out. She hadn't come this far to lose it all now. Especially not when Logan was right outside the gates waiting for her.  
  
"I know!" Zach replied.  
  
Then, they heard a sound that actually made their hearts skip a beat.  
  
Over the PA, came Lydecker's voice. "Maaaaaaaaaaax? Where are you? I'm coming to find you."  
  
"Shit." Zach said. Then he grabbed her hand and they raced back the way they had come.  
  
Max began to pray.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"I'm sorry," Jondy whispered, and could not bring herself to look at Logan.  
  
She took one last look at her sibs, and pressed the trigger. As they watched in sadness and glee, they watched a series of chain reaction explosions thunder through out Manticore. As each X-5 looked on, the place that they had considered hell all their lives went up in flame.  
  
Logan stared emptily, tears silently running down his face.   
  
Brin reach out and put a hand on his shoulder.  
  
He would not turn to face her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Logan had no recollection of the next twenty-four hours. He did not remember driving back to Seattle with Brin, Tinga and Jondy. He did not remember entering the penthouse, or smashing all his breakable belongings in a fit of rage. He did not remember threatening to kill Bling for taking him to the hospital, or ignoring the doctor who examined him. He did not remember releasing himself from the hospital. Nor did he remember coming back to the penthouse and taking a shower so hot his skin was bright red. He did not remember putting his Sibelius CD into the entertainment center and opening a bottle of Scotch. All he remembered was the pain.  
  
Max was gone.  
  
According to all the reports he had seen, Manticore had been reduced to rubble. Among the ashes, they had found destroyed computers and paper records, many bodies, most of who were too charred to be identified.  
  
Logan sat at his computer and turned it on. "This is a Streaming Freedom Video. Do not attempt to adjust your set, this cable hack is being sent across the country. Eyes Only cannot be bought or threatened, beaten, tortured or killed. This hack will terminate in sixty seconds. The explosion that destroyed Manticore Technologies also took the lives of two very special people. One was strong and courageous. The other was beautiful and kind. They will be missed. Especially the one I loved. Peace. Out." He ended the hack before his voice broke and took another swig of Scotch.  
  
He nearly fell out of his chair when he heard clapping coming from behind him. He swiveled in his chair and his eyes bulged as he saw Max standing in his doorway, looking worn, tired, and beautifully alive.  
  
She smiled tiredly, "Reports of my death have been highly exaggerated."  
  
He stood slowly and walked toward her, "Shut up."  
  
She frowned, "Excuse me?"  
  
Instead of replying, Logan walked to Max and firmly pressed a kiss against her lips, taking her breath away. Too tired to struggle, to shocked to consider the possibility of struggle, Max wrapped her arms around Logan, burying one hand deep in his damp hair. Abruptly, Logan pulled away and they were gasping for breath. A strangled sob escaped his lips and he dropped to his knees, burying his face in her stomach. She kneaded her hands through his hair and bent over him, rubbing her hands up and down his back and she spoke soothing gibberish to him. She his side and kissed him again.  
  
Logan swept her up in his arms and carried her into the bedroom, placing her gently on to the bed and looking at her as though she was something to be worshipped. She wrapped herself around him and whispered, "Make love to me." And he did. Happily and whole-heartedly.  
  
Later, when they lay tangled in each other's embrace, Max's head resting on Logan's chest as she listened to his heart beat, Logan's hands gently caressing her bare neck and back, he whispered, "I thought you were dead."  
  
"We almost were," she confessed. "I didn't kill Lydecker like I thought and he tried to hunt us down. Plus, Zach kept getting lost." She chuckled, "He wouldn't pull over and ask for directions."  
  
Logan chuckled as well, the laughter resonating deep inside his chest. "How did you finally escape?"  
  
She grinned and looked up at him. "The same way we did the first time. The same way I did when I met you."  
  
He smiled. "Out the-"  
  
"Window." They said in unison.  
  
"Never again," he whispered.  
  
"Never again what, love?" she asked, tracing abstract patterns on his chest.  
  
"Don't even leave me again," he kissed the soft crown of her hair.  
  
Max slid up his body so that their heads were resting on the same level. She nuzzled his face, whispering in his ear, "Never again."  
  
***********************************  
  
"Penny for your thoughts?" Max asked, pulling Logan from his reverie. She handed him a plate full of food and they went and sat on a loveseat. Around them, their guest migled. It made Max and Logan laugh to see Herbal and Sketchy talking shop with Johhny and Zane while Kendra talked to Brin and Jace about the first time she banged the gong, and Original Cindy explained to Tinga and Jondy the benefits of being a lesbian. Even Zach, who had walked to bride down the aisle and given her away, appeared to be having a good time as he tried to save Bling from a conversation with Normal.  
  
He set their plates down on the coffee table and took her hand, "They're not worth that much. I was just thinking."  
  
She smiled, reaching out and stealing a piece of shrimp from his plate, "You better have been thinking about me."  
  
He grinned, "Always, love, always."  
  
*When somebody loved you  
Everything was beautiful  
Every hour we spent together  
Lives within my heart  
When she loved me*  
  
_______________________________________________________________________________________  
  
Well? Did you like how I got rid of Manticore? Isn't this lovely shipperish fluff? More to follow, I promise.  



	3. We Can't Stop What We Have Begun

Author's Note: This one is set six months after the wedding. I know some of you wanted me to show the honeymoon, but I had to leave SOMETHING to your imaginations, didn't I? The characters belong to Cameron and Eglee; any songs I use are the rights of the writers and the record companies. Please read and review! It's the nice thing to do :)  
______________________________________________________________________________________  
  
"Logan? You here?"  
  
"In the computer room Bling!" Logan called to his friend. Glancing at his watch, he noticed that Bling was ten minutes early for their workout. Despite the fact that Max's blood had cured his paralysis, Logan still had Bling come over once a week to do physical therapy with him. Every so often Logan would feel pain and stiffness, and occasionally his legs would give out if he put them under too much stress, so his doctors advised him to keep up the PT. Not that Logan really minded. He knew it was what he needed to do to keep himself healthy. Not that Bling was really a pain to work with.  
  
The tall man appeared in the doorway grinning, "Ready for me to work your ass off?"  
  
Logan rolled his eyes, "Sure, why not?" He rose from his chair after shutting down his computer and led Bling into the main room. Looking around, he marveled at how much things had changed in the six short months he and Max had been married. She had been living with him for nearly a year before they wed, but it wasn't until after they returned from their honeymoon that their tastes truly merged. Her motorcycle and all it required had a permanent home of their own in the far corner where Bling used to keep all his PT equipment. Once Logan's legs had healed, Bling had opened up a small practice down town, and had moved all his equipment there. Logan's CD collection was a bit more diverse in its selections now, as was his refrigerator. Max was truly a junk food-aholic, despite his culinary masterpieces, and several containers and packages of said junk food took up space on the shelves. Her toiletries were now scattered all over the bathroom, instead of tucked away neatly in a bag underneath the sink. The guest room had been turned into a work out room where Max and Logan exercised together, although, truth be known, they never spent very long on the equipment. They always seemed to get distracted.  
  
After about half an hour of intense exercise, Logan threw a towel at Bling. "Do you mind if we finish a little early? I have some things I'd like to do before Max gets home."  
  
Bling could not help but smile as he took a swig from his water bottle. "Sure, not a prob. You got some kind of big romantic evening with the misses planned?"  
  
Logan grinned, "It's out six month wedding anniversary tonight. I know most people don't celebrate it, but I want to surprise Max with a nice quiet evening at home. She's been run down a lot lately."  
  
"You keeping your girl form getting her beauty sleep, my friend?" Bling asked, wisely ducking the water bottle that was aimed for his head.  
  
Logan shook his head. Eyes Only had been busy lately. Despite the new government order in place, there were still remnants of the old ways-people trying to milk all they could out of the depression, some hodgepodge military factions who wished they ran the streets, a corrupt official here, a robbery there, but nothing like how things used to be. Logan knew he and Max would be foolish to think that even though Manticore was gone and there was a new government in place, the world would be fine and dandy again. Logan knew that even before the Pulse there had been corruption and wide spread inhumane behavior. He had just been too preoccupied with his blue-blooded upbringing to see it.  
  
He and Max were more of a team now, even though she still did most of the fighting. The last several fights she had been more easily winded. Once, Logan had caught her leaning against the car for support. Another time, she had fallen asleep on the way home. Logan felt bad, because he knew that it was his Eyes Only crusade that was exhausting her. She had adopted his fight long ago, but he knew it was more out of her love for him than her desire to be altruistic. Max was still the same Max he had met all those years ago-just trying to keep her ass above water like everyone else.  
  
Bling smiled, "Whatever you two lovebirds want to do is your business. I'm happy to get out of the way."  
  
"Thanks man," Logan replied.  
  
Two hours later, as the sun was beginning to set, Logan was putting the final preparations on their special evening. He had cooked Pullet Chez Cale (obviously making sure the oven was on this time), found a nice pre-Pulse wine, set up a million candles all over the apartment, and drawn a bubble bath for his precious wife. Hearing the click of the door, he grabbed two glasses of wine and walked to the door, a smile on his face.  
  
"Happy Anniver-"  
  
But he stopped when he saw the look on his wife's face. She looked pale and drawn, slightly green, as though she was nauseous, and more tired than he had ever known her to be. Her eyes, usually so sparkling and full of mystery, were dull and listless. Her face was sad and she tried to hide from him. Silently, he set the wine glasses down on a nearby table and approached her. She did not attempt to move. He noticed she was slightly braced against the wall, but decided not to mention it. Wordlessly, he took Max into his arms and held her in a tight, tender embrace. He felt her go limp against him as she sighed with relief. He rubbed her back and she burrowed her head against his chest, taking strength and solace from his embrace.  
  
When he felt her rub his shoulders lightly, he pulled away a bit and tipped her chin with his forefinger. "Rough day?" he asked quietly.  
  
She smiled listlessly, "Something like that." Then she sniffed, "Smells wonderful. What's the occasion?"  
  
He smiled, "It's our six month anniversary."  
  
She frowned, "Oh Logan, I didn't-"  
  
He placed a finger on her lips, "Shhhh. I know, we never said we were going to do anything. I just wanted to do something special for you." He was surprised as he saw tears stream down her face. He took her head in his hands, wiping them away with his thumbs. "Mac, baby, what's wrong?"  
  
She shook her head, "Nothing. I just had a long day." She smiled. "You're incredible."  
  
He grinned, "You're not so bad yourself, love." He helped her ease out of her jacket and offered her some wine. Politely, she refused. He wondered if she had had a bad seizure, but decided not to press. He knew his wife well enough to know she was hiding something. He also knew her well enough to know he would find out eventually.   
  
Logan took Max by the hand and led her into their bedroom. He sat her down on the bed and slowly began undressing her. He stooped before her, removing her dusty boots and socks. He gently pushed her back so she was lying on the bed and he removed her tight black pants, discarding them in a pile. He had her sit up again so he could remove her dark purple shirt and black ski vest. She closed her eyes and leaned against him as he unhooked her bra and removed her panties.  
  
"Logan, I-" she began. She felt his chuckle rumble deep in his chest.  
  
"Not that love," he murmured, kissing her hair. "Only if you want to. Now keep your eyes closed and let me do everything." Logan laid her back down on the bed as he rose and removed his own clothing. Then he slipped into his robe and helped his wife into hers. Picking her up in his arms, he carried her into their spacious master bath, setting her down on the side of the tub and slipping off her robe. He bade her to get in, and then slipped in behind her. Relaxing against the back of the tub, Logan took Max in his arms and held her to his chest, every so often massaging her shoulders or hands.  
  
He smiled to hear her sigh with contentment.  
  
When Logan felt the water begin to cool, he knew it was almost time to finish phase one of the anniversary pampering. He took a cup from the side of the tub and filled it with bathwater, emptying it repeatedly over her hair. Then he squeezed a fair amount of her lavender shampoo into his palm and began working it into her scalp, massaging her head as he worked up lather. She smiled and he kissed her lightly. After he rinsed the shampoo from her hair, being careful not to get it in her eyes, he worked the lavender-scented conditioner into her long dark mane. He rinsed that well, letting the water stream over her face and shoulders, bathing her skin. Then her massaged her shoulders until he had nearly put her to sleep.  
  
"That feels wonderful," she murmured.  
  
"Shhhh," he whispered in her ear. "Don't talk." Logan slipped out of the tub and dried off, getting into his robe. He began to drain the now lukewarm bath water and she stood with his assistance. "Keep your eyes closed," he told her. He wrapped a large towel around her body and gently rubbed her arms until she dried. Then he helped her get into her terry cloth robe and dried her dripping wet hair with the towel, before scooping her up in his arms and carrying her into their bedroom. With his wife still in his arms, Logan sat against the bed's headboard, positioning her between his legs as he reached for a comb and began combing out the knots in her hair. When he had finished, he used a blow drier to dry in, all the while insisting that she keep her eyes closed.   
  
Logan smiled; time for phase two. "Max, honey," he said, his voice soft. "Can you get out of your robe and lie face down on the bed?"  
  
She opened her eyes and raised a brow. "What do you have in mind, Logan Cale?"  
  
He grinned devilishly, "You'll see in a moment, Mrs. Cale." As Max did as he asked, Logan lit the candles he had adorned their room with and turned on the CD he had selected.  
  
*Look at the sky, tell me what do you see  
Just close your eyes and describe it to me  
The Heaven's are sparkling with starlight tonight  
That's what I see through your eyes  
I see the Heaven's each time that you smile  
I hear your heartbeat just go on for miles  
And suddenly I know my life is worthwhile   
That's what I see through your eyes*  
  
He placed a small blanket over Max's butt and thighs and rubbed the massage oil briskly in his palms to warm it. "Take deep breaths," he instructed, placing his hands on her shoulders. Slowly, he gave his wife a full body massage, working the knots out of her shoulders and upper back, running his knuckles over her lower back as though he were playing the piano to relax her lower back. He rubbed down the backs of her legs with the oil, and then had her turn over, once again covering her with the blanket. This massage was to relax her, not excite him, after all. He worked on the front of her legs and feet, and her arms and hands. A smile of contentment graced Max's features and Logan once again swooped down to kiss her.  
  
*Here in the night, I see the sun  
Here in the dark, our two hearts are one  
It's out of our hands, we can't stop what we have begun  
And love just took me by surprise  
Looking through your eyes.  
I look at myself, instead I see your eyes*  
  
Finally, to end the massage, Logan rubbed his wife's temples, releasing the last of her stress and tension. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and swept her into his arms, rocking her back and forth. "I love you," he whispered.  
  
"I love you too," she replied.  
  
*Whoever I am, now it feels like enough  
And I see a girl who is learning to trust  
That's who I see through your eyes  
Here in the night, I see the sun  
Here in the dark, our two hearts are one  
It's out of our hands, we can't stop what we have begun   
And love just took me by surprise  
Looking through your eyes*  
  
Just then, the shrill ring of the telephone interrupted their bliss.  
  
"Ignore it," Logan whispered.  
  
"It might be important, Eyes Only," Max said, half asleep.  
  
Sighing, knowing his wife was right, Logan reached over and picked the phone up off the night table. "Hello?"  
  
"Money bags!" Cindy said. "How's my boo doing?"  
  
Logan frowned, "Uh, she's fine."  
  
"Whew, I'm glad. She gave us all a scare today when she passed out." Cindy said in a rush. "Take care of my boo, aiight Money bags? I'm gonna bounce on over to Crash. Don't let that girl out of your sight."  
  
"Okay," Logan said dimly. In a semi state of shock, Logan disconnected the phone and set it back down on the night table.  
  
"Who was it?" Max asked cheerfully.  
  
"Cindy," he replied quietly. He felt Max's body stiffen in his arms.  
  
"Oh," she said sadly.  
  
Logan turned Max to face him. He could see the tears and fear in her eyes. He pressed their foreheads together and said, "Beloved, tell me what's wrong. What happened today?"  
  
Max sniffed back her tears and climbed out of bed, allowing the blanket to fall from her frame. She stood naked before him. "Logan, look at me," she said evenly.  
  
He blinked, "I see you, baby. You look beautiful."  
  
"No," she said, with a firmness that shocked him. "Logan, *look* at me."  
  
*And there are some things we don't know   
Sometimes a heart just needs to grow  
And there is so much of us I remember  
Underneath the open sky, with you forever*  
  
Doing as his wife asked, Logan looked her up and down. He stared into her beautiful eyes, trying to find an answer in them, some way to absolve her pain. His eyes wandered to the swells of her breasts, and he noticed they looked fuller than usual. After peeling his eyes away, Logan's view traveled down her body to her stomach. Oh God, her stomach.  
  
Logan's heart stopped.  
  
He slowly rose off the bed and approached her. "Max...Max, are you...what I mean is, did we...you look..." He could not find the words.  
  
Seemingly in shock herself, Max nodded slowly. "Yes Logan, I'm pregnant."  
  
The joy she saw in his eyes was indescribable. He let out a guffaw and took her in his arms, spinning her around and covering her face with kisses. She laughed and lifted a feeble hand to his shoulder. "Easy there, killer, I've been vomiting enough as it is lately."  
  
He set her down apologetically. She reached for her robe and pulled it back on awkwardly. They sat on the side of the bed in a sort of stunned silence.  
  
*Here in the night, I see the sun  
Here in the dark, our two hearts are one  
It's out of our hands, we can't stop what we have begun  
And love just took me by surprise  
Looking through your eyes.   
Looking through your eyes*  
  
After a while, Logan wiped the silly grin off his face and turned to his wife. He finally saw the fear in her eyes. Gently, gingerly, he reached out and cupped her face with his hand. She turned and nuzzled his palm and he drew her to him. "Max," he began gently. "How far along are you?"  
  
She gulped, "About four months."  
  
He gasped, "When did you find out?"  
  
She looked at him, "Only today. I," she stopped. "I passed out earlier at Jam Pony, and Cindy freaked. When I came to I told her how tired and run down I've been feeling lately." Max stopped again, slightly ashamed. "I've been hiding it from you, because I didn't want you to worry, but I've been vomiting nearly every day for the last two weeks. I can usually keep it down until I get out of the building, or at least until you go into the kitchen to make breakfast." She could see the hurt in Logan's eyes and she touched his face. "I hid them because I didn't want you to freak. We were so happy, I didn't want you to think something was going wrong with the seizures or something."  
  
Panic filled Logan's eyes, "Max, have you-?"  
  
She placed her fingers on his lips, "No, I haven't had a seizure in nearly four months. I think the last one I had was right before I conceived, if I got the dates right." She smiled half-heartedly, "Maybe this baby is balancing off my seratonin levels." Mac could see the relief in Logan's eyes and she climbed into his lap. Instinctively, they both placed a hand on her stomach, Logan's on top of hers. She rested against his shoulder, "Cindy began putting two and two together and asked me when I'd last had my period. I figured it had been about four months, so she ran out and got me three EPTs from the corner market. I think she had to bribe the guy a little."  
  
Logan chuckled.  
  
"They all came back positive," Max continued.  
  
He kissed her temple, "We'll make a doctor's appointment in the morning." He gently rubbed the hand she held over her slightly bulging stomach. "Max, why didn't you tell me sooner?"  
  
She shook her head, "Logan, I honestly didn't realize it." She looked into his eyes, "You believe me right? I mean, how could you think I'd keep something like this from you?"  
  
He silenced her with a deep and passionate kiss. "Hush, beloved. I'm sorry. I'm still kinda shocked." He grinned sheepishly.  
  
She nodded, "Tell me about it. Imagine being the one who just found out her body's gonna blow up to the size of a blimp in a few months. I'm going to be fat and hormonal and sweaty and ugly and disgusting and you're probably not going to love me anymore." The last was nearly hysterical as Max choked back hormone induced sobs.  
  
Logan repressed a chuckle and held his wife tightly, soothing her. "Shhhh, now, don't cry. Honey, I could never not love you. In fact, I'll probably love you more. You're not going to be fat and ugly, you're carrying our child." He placed a hand tenderly on her stomach, laying her back against the pillows. "This baby is a miracle."  
  
Max grinned, "She's our miracle."  
  
Logan started, "She?"  
  
Max shrugged, "Or he. Or them." She sat up, "Oh God, Logan, what if it's a them! What if there's more than one of them? My body was designed to withstand pain, but I don't think that kind of pain." She grabbed his arm, "Logan, I don't know if any X-5 has ever been pregnant or carried to term." Tears once again filled her eyes, "Logan, I don't want to lose this baby."  
  
He took her in his arms, pressing himself lightly against her as she lay on their bed. "Sweetheart, darling, shhhh," he murmured soothing. "Everything will be fine. We'll talk to a doctor tomorrow, and call Zach to see what he knows. I have some government contacts who can pull the old Manticore records if I pay them enough money. We'll find out." He looked deep into her eyes, allowing his stare to calm her, "Do you think I'd ever let anything happen to you and this baby?"  
  
She shook her head, "Of course not."  
  
He kissed her deeply, passionately, a profound, tender love running through him. He undid her robe to her stomach and kissed the tiny bulge, resting his head on her belly. "Hello little one," he whispered, feeling Max thread her fingers through his hair. "We're your mommy and daddy. We already love you very much."  
  
Max smiled, hearing her husband's tender words to their unborn child. Nevertheless, she could not dispel the fear that ran through her. Knowing she was pregnant had her terrified.  
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~Fin~  
  
So? Did ya like I know it's not very original...Max and Logan get married, Max gets pregnant...blah blah blah...there's more to come, children, don't worry. Please R&R!!  
BTW, the song's by LeAnn Rimes, and it's on the "Quest for Camelot" Soundtrack and her album "Sitting on Top of the World"...it's called "Looking through your eyes" or something like that :)  



	4. Don't Wanna Speak Tonight

Author's Note: You know the drill. They're not mine, and never have been, I just borrow em cuz I see them running around inside my head sometimes. I got the title from a Lifehouse song called "Breathing." Enjoy!  
_______________________________________________________________________________________  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Cale, would you like to see your baby?"  
  
Logan grinned and squeezed Max's hand, hardly containing his excitement. He looked down at Max and saw the worry in her face. He knew how scared she was. They were supposed to meet Zach and Tinga for lunch later to discuss Max's pregnancy. Logan leaned down and kissed Max's temple, whispering, "Don't worry, beloved. Our baby will be fine."  
  
Max struggled to smile, finding little solace in his words. She nodded to the doctor, who began the ultrasound. She squeezed a cold, clear gel onto Max's slightly rounded stomach and began moving the sensor around. Max and Logan watched the screen, transfixed and awestruck. The image on the monitor was unintelligible. Max furrowed her brow, "Where is it?"  
  
The doctor chuckled, "Hang on a sec. Your baby seems to be hiding from the camera."  
  
Logan squeezed Max's hand again, "Just like her Momma."  
  
The doctor raised an eyebrow, "Her?"  
  
Logan smiled, "Max thinks we're having a girl."  
  
The doctor nodded, "I won't be able to tell you for certain for several months whether or not your baby is male or female."  
  
"No big," Max said distractedly. "We can wait."  
  
Hearing Max's tone, Logan frowned slightly and looked down at his wife. She was staring at the monitor with tears in her eyes. Her breathing was deep and slow, as though she was trying to keep herself in control. Her body was stiff and rigid. The fear in his wife was palpable. Logan had rarely known her to be afraid, but it was obvious to him how much this pregnancy frightened her. They had never discussed having children, so the shock of an unexpected pregnancy was rough enough. However, being the result of genetic experiments was another thing. He could only imagine the horrors that were running through Max's mind. Sadly, Logan knew there was most likely very little he could do to calm her fears.  
  
After the sonogram, the doctor handed them the first picture of their baby. Max barely looked at it and handed it to Logan. She sat up and said, "Doctor, you should know my past medical history. I don't know if it is in my file."  
  
Supportively, Logan went to take her hand but Max withdrew her hands and placed them nervously in her lap. She took and deep breath, avoiding Logan's eyes, "In my family, there are several genetic defects. All my brothers and sisters have them. We are stronger than most and have heightened senses of sight, smell, and hearing." A look of dread began to mar Max's features.  
  
The doctor was writing furiously in the chart. "Well, I'm not familiar with those particular genetic defects, but there are worse ones you could have."  
  
Logan sighed.  
  
Max stared at the doctor, "I do. My brothers, sisters, and I also have uncontrollable seizures. They range from shakes and tremors to full-blown grand mauls that can last over an hour. We take Tryptophan to control the, but it's usually not enough and we need higher doses to end the seizures." Every word was filled with pain as she imagined her child living the life she had led. The burden felt like a weight on her chest.  
  
The doctor nodded and turned to Logan, 'Do you have any genetic defects in your family?"  
  
He shook his head, "Not to my knowledge."  
  
The doctor smiled kindly at Max, "I understand your concern. However, there is no guarantee that your child will inherit those problems. Especially since your husband has no family history of problems." She took out a note pad. "I'm writing you a different prescription. This should help keep your seizures in check. We normally give it to pregnant epileptics. It is less likely to have any unwanted side effects on your baby."  
  
Max took the piece of paper from her and stared at it. She placed her hand on her stomach protectively, unaware of how intently Logan was watching her. She was unaware as he scheduled another appointment for her. All she could think of was the baby inside her and the life it would be damned to lead because it had the misfortune of having her, Manticore Class of '09 alum Maxine Guerva Cale, for a mother.  
  
"Max," Logan said gently, wrenching his wife from her thoughts. "It's time to go." They had just enough time to get across town to meet Zach and Tinga.  
  
They walked to their car in an uneasy silence. Logan kept glancing over at Max, hoping to see some sign from her. They climbed into the Aztec and sat quietly. The silence was painful. Finally, Logan took a deep breath, "Are you all right?"  
  
She nodded dimly, "Swell. It's all good."  
  
Logan reached out and placed his hand along the base on her skull and jaw, caressing the skin behind her ear with this thumb. "Max," he said softly.   
  
She blinked, "Logan, I'm fine, really." But she could not bring herself to look at him. His touch was so gentle she wanted to weep, and she knew he was trying to comfort her, but it wasn't working. She was afraid that if she admitted her fears aloud, they would happen.  
  
"Honey, you don't have to hide from me. We're in this together..." Logan began.  
  
Max laughed bitterly and turned her head away, causing him to drop his hand. "Logan, I know you think we are, but we're not. This kid is in my body and if she's gonna be screwed up, it's my fault." Before he had a chance to respond, she reached for the door handle. "I gotta bounce. I don't feel much like going to lunch. Tell Tinga and Zach I'm sorry." And with that, she left, jogging away from the car.  
  
"Max!" Logan called. His heart was screaming at him to go after her. But he knew how adept she was at being evasive. He growled in frustration and punched the steering wheel, "Dammit!" Then he turned the key in the ignition and drove off, hoping that in his travels he would find a way to help his wife.  
  
***  
  
When he arrived at the restaurant, Zach and Tinga were already there. Zach noticed him first and begrudgingly flagged him down. For the most part, Logan and Zach had resolved their differences, mostly for Max's sake, but they would never be best friends. Especially not when they were both in love with the same woman.  
  
Zach frowned, "Where's Max?"  
  
Logan sighed, "Where to you think?"  
  
"She's wiggin, huh?" Tinga asked.  
  
Logan nodded, "She's worried that the baby's going to inherit all the X-5 defects." He placed his head in his hands, "I don't know what to do."  
  
"Are you afraid too," Zach asked in a tone Logan could not discern as one filled with derision or half hearted sympathy.  
  
"Of course I am!" Logan snapped. "This is my wife and child we're talking about. Max is scared to death and there is nothing I can do to help her. We don't know what this pregnancy will do to her seizures, or what the seizures will do to the baby." Tears filled his eyes, "I don't want to lose either of them."  
  
"Then why did you get her pregnant?" Zach asked coldly.  
  
Logan glared at him, "We didn't plan this." He sighed and looked at Tinga. "I guess it never occurred to us. Even after Jace we didn't really think about it." Logan swallowed hard, thinking of all the times he had dreamt of having a normal life with Max-the house, white picket fence, two kids, a god, all of it. He looked at his de-facto brother and sister-in-law. 'We need to find out if any other Manticore engineered soldier, especially an X-5, other than Jace, has been pregnant."  
  
"I was," Tinga said sadly.  
  
Logan watched in astonishment as Zach reached out and took Tinga's hand. "You were?" Logan asked, virtually speechless. Tinga nodded. "What happened?"  
  
She breathed deeply, "When we made the raid on Manticore, I was nearly four months along. I slept with a guy I had been casually dating, but he didn't want it. I dumped his ass and decided to keep it. Around my sixth month, my seizures got really bad. I went into labor at seven and a half months. Zach was with me. The doctors tried to save my baby, but he was too little. His lungs were only as developed as a fetus at six and a half months gestation. He had several small seizures and his heart gave out." Tears shone in her eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry," Logan whispered, fear filling his heart.  
  
Zach patted Tinga's hand and released it. "Logan, you need to get your people to release the Manticore records on this. As far as I know, Max, Jace, and Tinga are the only transgenic females ever to get pregnant."  
  
Logan nodded.  
  
Tinga wiped her eyes, "Don't lie to Max about what we said. But you have to let her know that there's no proof that what happened to my baby will happen to yours. Besides, Jace's baby was fine. He's never exhibited any signs of seizures, but I think she gives him small doses of Tryptophan just in case." Tinga smiled encouragingly. "You need to be strong for Max, Logan. She's going to need you to get through this."  
  
Zach and Tinga stood. "We'll be in touch," Zach said as Tinga patted Logan's shoulder.  
  
"Be strong," she whispered.  
  
"Yeah," he muttered, closing his eyes to the fear and sadness that were weighing his heart.  
  
***  
  
He found Max's new anti-seizure prescription on the floor of the car and decided to get it filled. On the way home from the pharmacy, Logan stopped of at Bling's. When he arrived, Bling was with a patient. "Hey hey my man, what's shakin'?" His jovial smile faded when he saw Logan's expression. He indicated to Logan to go into the small private gym in the back. When Bling entered after dismissing his patient and locking the front door, he found Logan going twelve rounds, bare fisted, with a punching bag. As Bling watched, Logan attacked the bag, obviously ignoring the pain that was throbbing through his hands. Bling stayed in the doorway, watching as Logan pummeled out his frustration.  
  
When he had spent his energy, Logan leaned against the bag with a heavy sigh, slowly clenching and unclenching his fists as he winced in pain. Bling calmly walked to a small refrigerator and removed two ice packs. Handing them to his upset friend, he asked, "Did your night not go as well as you'd planned?"  
  
Logan chuckled bitterly, "No, it was great." He stopped and looked at his swollen hands. "Max is pregnant."  
  
Bling broke out into a huge smile, but quickly hid it as he saw the look in Logan's eyes. "So why aren't you breaking out the cigars?" Bling asked cautiously.  
  
Logan sat wearily on a bench. "Max is freaking out. She's afraid the baby is going to inherit the Manticore party gifts."  
  
"The seizures," Bling supplied.  
  
Logan nodded.  
  
"So where's Max?"  
  
Logan threw up his hands dejectedly, "I don't know. She was pretty upset at the hospital and ran off." He bowed his head, his entire posture betraying his emotions. "I don't know what to do. Bling, what if she runs away? What if she decides not to keep the baby?"  
  
Bling tried to smile reassuringly, "My man, max loves you. You know that. She'd never believe you. My guess is, she also loves the baby. I don't honestly think she'll abort the pregnancy. You've got to give her time to get used to this."  
  
"What about me?" Logan exploded, rising to his feet. "Doesn't she think I'm scared? I don't know anything about kids, or about being a father. And it's not like I can run to my parents for advice." He looked down sadly. "Bling, I'm afraid I'm going to lose them both. Max's body might not be physically able for this. Manticore didn't exactly engineer their females to handle something like this."  
  
Bling placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, "Logan, you two can handle this. Max is strong. She'll be fine and so will your baby."  
  
Logan bit his lip and looked away, "I hope you're right."  
  
Bling smiled, "Of course I am. Now go home and wait for your wife."  
  
***  
  
Max did not come home until nine p.m. For ten hours, she had wandered the city. She had gone to Jam Pony and made a few runs even though she had called in sick. After a trip to the Needle for some more head clearing, she had met Cindy and Kendra at Crash and they had discussed her "problem." Kendra still had no knowledge of Manticore, so they had talked about Max's concerns in terms of her "neurological condition."  
  
"Boo," Cindy said gently. "You're dipping into Logan's gene pool with this kid. Your...condition might not be passed on. I mean, Logan does have some fine genes, if you know what I'm saying. And I'm a lesbian!"  
  
"We don't know it won't be inherited," Max said, nursing her soda. Zach and Tinga had hunted her down at the Needle and she had found out about Tinga's baby. So, in the infant mortality a la Manticore department, they were 50/50. It looked like she was the deciding vote for X-5 motherhood. For seemingly the millionth time that day, Max fought back tears.  
  
Kendra squeezed her hand, "Max, even if your baby *does* inherit it, so what? You and Logan will deal with it. I doubt you'll love the baby any less."  
  
"But how could I knowingly do that to someone?" Max looked at Cindy, "How could I put my child through everything I went through?"  
  
  
Cindy's eyes were full of sympathy, "Max, this baby won't go through what you went through, and on some level you know it. Lil Boo'll have you and Moneybags for parents."  
  
Max smiled a half smile and sipped her soda. She knew Original Cindy and Kendra were right. She also knew that she had probably hurt Logan by running off on him and wigging out. She knew he must have been going through hell. Finishing her soda, she smiled at her friends sincerely, "Well, my girls, I gotta bounce. Gotta get home to make sure hubby's not freaking."  
  
Cindy stood to hug her, "You gonna be okay?"  
  
Max returned the hug, "Yeah, we're gonna be all good."  
  
From her seat, Kendra reached out and patted Max's stomach, "Bye, Lil Boo."  
  
Max chuckled.  
  
As she approached the penthouse front door, keep in hand, Max took a deep breath. She patted her stomach and sighed, "Well, little one, let's go apologize to daddy." Her heart thundering, Max entered the apartment, discovering that most of the lights were off. Only the lights in the kitchen and computer room were on. When she didn't find her husband in the kitchen, Max quietly padded towards the computer room. Dismayed, she discovered Logan was not in there either.  
  
She found him sitting on the couch in the dark, staring out the window. Gently, she sat behind him and slipped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his shoulder and kissing his neck. "Logan," she whispered. "Look at me." She crawled around him and took his face in her hands. His eyes were red and puffy, much like hers. They were both shaking. Max pressed her forehead to her husband's and kissed the tip of his nose. "I'm sorry." Looking deep into his eyes, she said, "I'm scared."  
  
"I know," he whispered.  
  
She ran her fingers over his stubble, "Are you?"  
  
*Don't lie to Max* Logan remembered Tinga's words. Gazing into her emotive eyes, depths that he knew from experience one could get lost in, Logan lost all composure. His walls crumbled and he wept.  
  
Seeing her husband, usually do strong and quiet, coming undone and in tears, broke Max's heart. *Oh God, I did this to him. We should have been going through it together, not alone* she thought. She took Logan into her arms and lay back onto the couch cushions. He clung to her, burying his face in her hair as she caressed his back soothingly. She wept too. They were weeping for joy. They were weeping in sadness.  
  
When the crying had spent their energy, Max and Logan lay entwined on the couch. He kissed her deeply and murmured in a shaky voice, "Whatever you decide, I'll support." As much as it pained him to say that, he knew he had no other choice. He understood and shared Max's fear. What right did they have to bring a child into the world if it was going to be sick all its life?  
  
Max's heart swelled with love and she kissed him back. "I love you. And we're keeping this baby." She smiled as she saw a spark fill Logan's eyes. She knew it was what he had been hoping for. Nevertheless, her smiled faded, "I spoke to Zach and Tinga. I know what happened to her baby. I am scared to death because our baby is blessed to have you for a father, but cursed to have all my Manticore goodies and me for a mother. I wouldn't wish what I have on anyone, especially not my own child."  
  
"Max," he said softly, touching her lips with his fingertips to silence her. He placed his palm over her stomach, feeling the new bulge and the warmth of her body. "This baby couldn't have asked for a better mother. I look at you and I see the strongest, bravest, most beautiful woman I've ever known." Rising off the couch, he led her to the long mirror and positioned her in front of him. Taking her face in her hand from behind, he repeated, "This is the singularly most beautiful face I've ever seen. I said it when we met and I meant every word of it." His hands traveled down and rested over her stomach. Her soft hands came to rest on top of his.  
  
"Logan" she said, looking at him in the mirror. 'What if something is wrong with the baby?"  
  
"Then we'll handle it," he promised, kissing her hair.  
  
His words were reassuring and for the first time in twenty-four hours, max was able to feel the joy of being pregnant.   
  
"You must be hungry," he murmured, moving in the direction of the kitchen.  
  
Her body felt cold when they broke contact and she reached out for him, "I can wait a little while. I just want you to hold me, hold us, for now."  
  
Logan smiled, "There's nothing better I'd rather do, love." He lead her back to the couch and they settled on his, Logan lying on his back, Max resting against his chest, tracing idle patterns on his shirt. She closed her eyes and listen to the sounds of the room. Resting her head against Logan's chest, she could hear perfectly his heart beat. Max was amazed when she found her own heart beating in perfect synchronicity with her husband's. What truly shocked her was that, as she made her superhuman hearing even more acute, she could detect a third, faint heartbeat, also beating in rhythm with theirs.  
  
With a gasp, she sat up.  
  
"What?" Logan asked, concern etched on his face.  
  
Beaming, Max leaned back against the couch and put Logan's ear to her belly. "Listen," she whispered. The Manticore blood that Max had put into Logan's veins had increased some of his abilities. An immeasurable smile spread across his handsome features as he picked up the baby's heartbeat. He felt Max thread her fingers through his hair and he wrapped his arms around her waist. His hearing was not as acute as Max's, and he could no longer detect the heartbeat, but he knew it was there. Logan once again took Max in his arms and held her, protecting his new family. The feeling that welled inside him was overwhelming.  
  
Both parents were frightened for their child, knowing what kind of world they would be bringing him or her into. They also knew what they had gone through to be able to bring her into the world at all. It was changing for the better, day by day, with the help of people like the Cales. Max and Logan, although they both feared the possibility that their baby would inherit the seizures, knew that the ghosts of Manticore were nearly done haunting them. If their baby could be born without incident, then they knew they would be free finally, able to start their new life with their new daughter.  
  
The only other worry in Logan's mind was what the pregnancy would do to his wife. "You know," he said some time later. "You're going to have to take it easy for the next five months, you know that right?"  
  
Max sighed, "I know, I know. I was thinking about that. I'm gonna have to quit Jam Pony and stop riding both my bikes for a while."  
  
"No Eyes Only crusades or general do-gooder ass kicking either, beloved," he said, teasingly.  
  
"I know that too," she replied, slapping him good-naturedly. "But where will that leave you, oh might Oz?"  
  
"I'll figure something out," Logan answered, chuckling. He looked down at his wife, "So, dinner?"  
  
"There's still some chicken left over from last night," she told him.  
  
"How about a stir fry or fajitas?"  
  
Max grinned gleefully, "Fajitas. With chocolate sauce."  
  
Logan blinked, amazed. "Huh?"  
  
His wife laughed, "Just kidding, dear. I don't have any bizarre cravings yet. But just you wait." She poked his chest to punctuate her words.  
  
"I can hardly wait," he said sincerely.  
  
Max looked down at her stomach, "Me too."  



	5. Time Bomb

Author's Notes: This chapter is set three months after the last one, making Max about seven months along. The characters are not mine (except the doctor); they belong to Cameron and Company. If I use any songs, they are not mine either; they are the property of the artists/songwriters. Okay, be warned, there's some angst in this fic, the latest chapter in a series that has been, to date, mainly pure fluff. Well, the honeymoon's over kids. I planned this out as a Romance/Action Adventure/Drama fic, and here in comes the next to elements. You've been warned. LOL okay, enough jabbering...on with the fic!  
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The sun poured through the open bedroom blinds, flooding the room with light. A swath of sun washed over the bed, waking Logan from a deep and peaceful slumber. As he opened his eyes, he felt warmth next to him and smiled. Looking at the bedside clock, he discovered it was nearly nine thirty. Logan rolled over and propped himself up on an elbow, gazing lovingly at his sleeping wife. Lately, Max had been having trouble sleeping, and was usually up and out of bed by the time Logan woke. Many mornings he found her in the kitchen munching on toast and Tabasco sauce or eggs and chocolate syrup. Truly, her pregnancy cravings were doing a number on his culinary skills. But he wouldn't have it any other way. Logan knew, as he gently traced the lines of Max's bare shoulder, that he wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.  
  
Max's pregnancy had mellowed her considerably. Since the destruction of Manticore and the moment that had moved in together, Max had assumed more normal sleeping patterns. For years, she had trained herself to require very little sleep, so she would always be awake and alert should Lydecker ever track her down. But with the threat eliminated, Max had begun to calm. She had told Logan once that the safest she ever felt was in their bed, in his arms, listening to his heartbeat. That feeling of safety lulled her to sleep, and it made him glad. She had slept a great deal more during her pregnancy than he had ever known her to do, mainly because she was not willing to let anything threaten the health of their unborn child.   
  
But to Logan's surprise, Max did not complain about the bed rest. She no longer felt caged if she was inside or stationary for too long. She did not complain about being unable to ride her motorcycle. Instead of spending long hours at Crash with Cindy and Kendra, Max preferred to stay home. She spent many nights taking long, relaxing bubble baths Logan drew for her and frequently joined her in. They would curl up on the couch and watch pre-Pulse movies. Max had recently adopted a new favorite pastime-she would lie on the couch, her head in her husband's lap, as he read to her, stroking her hair and face. Max spent her days visiting Original Cindy at Jam Pony or hanging out with Kendra at Walter's while he was at work. Occasionally, she met Tinga for lunch, and every so often would pay visits to Zach. He was not exactly thrilled with the fact his Second in Command was growing great with child. He, like Logan, agonized over the toll the pregnancy would have on her health.  
  
Towards the end of Max's fourth month, Logan had booked them a trip to France. In Paris, they had met with a neonatal and neurological specialist who agreed to work with Max's Seattle physician to ensure that she and the baby would be healthy. A Swiss geneticist who was a colleague of the French doctor agreed to do genetic testing on Max and Logan's unborn child. They were overjoyed to discover that their baby had a less than fifteen percent chance of inheriting the defective seizure gene. Before returning stateside, Max and Logan had spent three weeks in Paris, then traveled to the south of France, where they spent two more weeks. Logan had taken Max to Ireland, to show her where his father, on a business trip in the early 1980's, had proposed to Logan's mother. By the time the Cales had returned to Seattle, max could no longer see her feet.  
  
Teasingly, Logan pulled back the sheet so it uncovered everything to his wife's waist. Although they had to put a temporary hold on making love, because she was getting so very pregnant, Max and Logan still slept in the nude. They like the closeness, primarily. It was also easier for Max, when her body temperature fluctuated because of her raging hormones, to remain cooler if she was unclothed. Her husband traced the lines of her spine with his fingertips, causing her to shiver slightly. He brushed her hair to one side and blew gently onto her neck. He suppressed a laugh as a frown slightly marred her still sleeping features. Again, with his fingertips, Logan tickled the skin around Max's neck and shoulder. She shrugged her shoulder slightly and rolled over, snuggling nearer to him. The tautly pulled flesh of her pregnant belly pressed against Logan's body, and he could feel the child within her move as Max pressed against his body. The sensations overwhelmed him and he pulled her into his arms, wrapping one arm under her neck and shoulders, while encircling her waist with the other. He felt her warmth radiating from her, and the rhythm of her breathing as her chest rose and fall.  
  
Suddenly, he felt her place a gentle kiss to her chest, and then work her way up to his neck and jaw line. He caught her mouth and kissed her passionately. "Faker," he murmured, tracing her jaw line with his thumb.  
  
She chuckled, her breath warm against his neck, and rested her head on his shoulder, inhaling his scent. "I wanted to see what you would do. I liked it."  
  
He kissed her hair, "How are you feeling?"  
  
She sighed, "Really tired and achy. I'm all bloated and nasty today."  
  
Logan caressed her back gently, "And the child?"  
  
She patted her stomach, "We've got a soccer player, I swear Logan. She's doing a number on me today."  
  
He frowned sympathetically, "Just rest today. I'll go fix you some breakfast, then I'll come back here and give you a back rub."  
  
Max grinned, "Sounds heavenly."  
  
Logan kissed her softly on the mouth and swung back the covers, pulling on his robe. He tossed her on of his T-shirts in case she wanted to put it on, and headed for the kitchen to make her breakfast. "Tabasco and chocolate sauce today?" he called, grimacing.  
  
"Nope," she replied. "No whacko cravings this morning."  
  
"Thank you God," he muttered.  
  
"I heard that!" she said, laughter in her voice.  
  
He smiled, 'I thought you might."  
  
Twenty minutes later, he had made them toast, scrambled eggs, juice, tea, fresh fruit, and sausage. He put the food on a tray and carried it into the bedroom. He found Max sitting up in bed, wearing his shirt, the blankets pulled across her lap. She was reading one of his Eyes Only files. Grinning, he set the tray down on a bedside table and gently took the file from her. "All work and no play makes for dull life," he chided.  
  
Her eyes twinkled, "You got something in mind to play, dearest?' She had not lost her edge in marriage or pregnancy. She was still as fiery as the day he met her.  
  
"Back rub time," he said. He helped her into position, kneeling, sort of, a pillow beneath her stomach, her arms spread out in front of her, her stomach between her legs. Logan got behind her and worked the kinks out of her back. As the baby grew inside her, it pressed against Max's sciatic nerve, sending painful spasms through her back. Although he could not imagine what Max was going through physically, he knew how painful back spasms were. For half an hour, Logan worked on Max's back, his hands expertly soothing her discomfort.  
  
"You asleep?" he asked quietly.  
  
"No," she answered, sitting up and stretching. "Just hungry."  
  
After they ate, Max grew tired and decided to go back to sleep. Logan tucked her in and left her to shower and dress. Around eleven Bling came by, and found Logan working in his computer room.   
  
"Hey man," Bling greeted. "How goes the domestic life?" He frowned when he saw Logan slump a little. "Logan, is everything okay?"  
  
Logan sighed and turned in his chair to face his friend. He had learned long ago that the only way he and Max were going to survive the pregnancy was if they confided in their friends and in each other if they were worried. "Max is just very tired today. The baby's pressing on her sciatic nerve, and it's painful for her."  
  
Bling leaned against the doorframe, "It's something like what you went through when your back started healing itself because of her blood. I can give her some light PT for it, and I can teach you how to help her if you want."  
  
Logan smiled gratefully, "Thanks man, I really appreciate it."  
  
Bling frowned, "You're still worried about her health, huh?"  
  
Logan nodded reluctantly, "The doctors told us the baby is perfectly healthy and isn't in any danger. Max is another story. She's taking meds to control her seizures, but the pills aren't as potent as the Tryptophan, and that could barely control them. It's like she's a time bomb waiting to go off."  
  
"What about the theory that the pregnancy could be balancing off her seratonin levels?" Bling asked.  
  
Logan shrugged, "It's speculation. We don't know why the X-5 females seize or don't seize during pregnancy. Jace didn't, Tinga did. Max is the deciding factor." Logan had gotten some of the Manticore medical records released, but no research had been done on pregnant X-5s. They were regularly given birth control, and were kept more or less in check. For Valentine Ops, protocol called for an emergency contraceptive. But X-5s were never expected to get pregnant; it wasn't part of mission parameters.  
  
Bling placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, "Have faith Logan. Your wife and child are strong."  
  
Then, as if on cue, Logan heard Max call him desperately from the bedroom. Seconds later she cried out in pain. Logan scrambled out of his chair and raced for their bedroom with Bling close at his heels. They found Max sitting up in bed, clutching her stomach, fear in her eyes. Logan sat next to her. "Max, what's wrong?" Fear crept into his throat.  
  
Tears filled her eyes, "It feels like, argh, I'm in, ugh, labor." She clenched her eyes shut as another contraction passed through her. "They're so close together, ow ow ow!" She sagged back against the headboard, "It hurts so bad Logan. It's too early."  
  
Logan turned to Bling, who had just reentered the room, "Bling, call an-"  
  
"Already did," Bling answered. "The paramedics are on their way."  
  
Logan took Max in his arms, "Hang on, sweetie, help is coming." He felt another contraction ripple through her and she screamed. She buried her head into his shoulder, biting her lip against the pain.  
  
"Have you guys started Lamaze yet?" Bling asked, sitting on the other side of the bed from his friend.  
  
"We're supposed to go next week," Logan replied, rocking Max in his arms, because he was unsure what else to do.  
  
Bling chuckled, "Figures." He looked at Max. "Max, I know it must hurt like a bitch, but you might just be having false labor. You've gotta breathe, okay? Take big, deep, slow breaths. Follow me." Carefully, Bling began to mimic the Lamaze breathing he had learned from a midwife friend of his. Nodding to Logan to join them, Bling held Max's gaze as he helped her through the contraction. Once the Cales had gotten the hang on it, Bling decided to wait by the door for the EMTs. When another contraction hit Max, it was up to Logan to help her through it.  
  
"Just breathe honey, slowly, look in my eyes," he instructed gently.   
  
"Screw you," she said, huffing and puffing. The she began to weep. "I'm sorry. It hurts so bad. We definitely weren't made to handle this kind of pain." She stared into his eyes as another contraction passed. "Logan, I'm scared."  
  
"I know," he said, kissing her hair. "I am too. But Bling's probably right. I've heard about these false labors. They're supposedly pretty common."  
  
"I wish someone had told me," she grunted. Then, she felt a tremor go through her body that was unlike the contractions she had experienced. Her heart started to pound as the tremors got stronger. "Oh no, Logan I-" Max began. However, before she could finish, a full seizure overtook her, as she collapsed into Logan's arms, shaking violently.  
  
"Max!" Logan screamed. "Bling! Get in here! Max is seizing! I need you to get her box out of he bathroom!" Three years ago Logan had obtained liquid Tryptophan in case of an emergency. He wished more than anything this wasn't the emergency.  
  
Bling dashed in with the syringe and vile of medicine. "I just saw the paramedics pull up out front." He watched as Logan gently laid Max on the bed, even though she was still shaking violently, and injected the Tryptophan into her arm.  
  
"Hang on, Max," Logan whispered. "Please hang on." As he heard the paramedics burst into the penthouse, Logan Cale began to pray.  
  
~~To Be Continued!!!~~~~  



	6. Till My Body Is Dust

Author's note: I could not believe the overwhelming response I got to the last chapter. You guys didn't actually think I am gonna let Max and the as yet unnamed Cale child die do you? *L* Well, apparently you do. Read and find out. Warning to all shippers: This is still a Romance, but it's got Drama and Action/Adventure too; there's some angst ahead...don't say I didn't warn ya. The characters are not mine, but I think I do a better job with em than the owners do. :) Anywho, read and enjoy...AND REVIEW! I love getting em! Thanks also to everyone who emails me separately. Your interest is gratifying. Hey, Callie,...wanna be my first beta reader? You'll get advanced dibs on what happens in the stories...email me and let me know.  
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One week.  
  
That's how long it had been since Logan's world came thundering to a standstill.   
  
Logan could vividly recall the paramedics strapping a twitching Max to the stretcher, inserting IV's and administering drugs. They had stabilized her and transported his wife to the same hospital Logan had been in after the shooting. Life and Fate were not without their twisted senses of humor. As a standard, post-Pulse policy (and, as with everything post-Pulse, it was the complete opposite of what had been before the Pulse), family members were not allowed to ride along in the rig. Logan remembered standing in the street, watching the ambulance speed away. He remembered Bling pulling his car around and driving him to the hospital. He remembered paging Original Cindy and Kendra. He remembered Max's Ob/Gyn finding him in the waiting room and giving him the news.  
  
Logan stood there for a long tie. He could hear Kendra sniffing her nose. Bling came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Let me take you home."  
  
"No."  
  
Logan's voice was gruff, and thick with emotion.  
  
"Boo," Cindy said gently, quietly, her eyes red rimmed, standing in front of Logan. "You should go home and rest."  
  
"No!"  
  
Logan's voice reverberated throughout the room, echoing off the glass walls and smacking him in the face. His eyes filled with tears. "I want to stay with them." His voice was like a little child's. "They need me."  
  
Cindy understood, and nodded to Bling and Kendra; everyone knew fighting with Logan was useless, especially when it came to Max. "Okay Logan." Cindy hugged him. "I'll stop by after work tomorrow."  
  
"Me too," Kendra murmured, touching his arm.  
  
After the women had left, Bling hugged Logan, whispering, "It'll be okay."  
  
"Yeah," Logan replied dismally. "You keep telling me that."  
  
His tone sent a pang through Bling, and he reluctantly left.  
  
Logan watched his friend leave, wishing he could believe him. But all he could believe was the empty feeling inside him. His soul felt as though it was dying. His heart was ready to break, and his shoulders sagged under an invisible pressure. Furiously, fueled by pain and anger and rage and despair, Logan spun around and slammed his fist into a wall. It hurt like hell and he released a growl. Soon that growl turned to a sob and Logan broke down and wept, sinking sorrowfully to the floor. After a time, when his tears had subsided, Logan dragged himself to his feet, wiping at his eyes. He trudged out into the brightly lit hallway and squinted, looking for the doctor. He caught her eye and she smiled sympathetically. Walking to him, she said, "Mr. Cale, would you like me to take you to her?"  
  
Logan nodded, feeling much like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Slowly, they walked toward the room Logan felt as though he was walking to his execution. He felt like a vice was gripping his chest. Suddenly, he sagged against the wall. "I can't do this," he muttered. "God, I just can't."  
  
The doctor placed a hand on his shoulder, "Yes you can. Take deep breaths."  
  
Logan complied and they were once again walking. The doctor stopped in front of the last room, the largest and most private. Affluence had its advantages. She ushered him inside, and murmured, "I'll leave you alone. Come and find me when you're finished and we can make further arrangements."  
  
Logan felt the air being sucked out of him. "Thank you doctor." He pulled the steel stool up beside her bed and took her hand in his, stroking her hair. The horror of what he saw made him want to vomit. The sight of machines and tubes running in and out of her body was ghastly. Her skin was pale and ashen; her hair limp and greasy, her lips parched. A sheen of sweat covered her face and he grabbed a cloth from the nightstand, dabbing at her face. A ventilator and a heart monitor provided the soundtrack for Logan's nightmare, hissing and beeping, reminding him that his wife was alive. He had to keep remembering that. She was alive. His heart, his soul, his purpose, was still with him. At least physically.  
  
The doctors had determined that there would be little to no brain or organ damage since they had acted so quickly. Her seizure had been frighteningly severe, one of the worst, in Logan's estimation, she had ever had. Nurses took blood samples every six hours. Intravenously they administered drugs, saline, blood when necessary, and nutritional supplements to keep her adequately fed. They had put her in a coma to keep her seizures under control. Contacting her doctor in France, they had put her on a medication more powerful than Tryptophan, but with less side effects. To work effectively though, the medication had to be administered for a week. And the danger of another fatally severe seizure was too high.   
  
Putting his wife in a coma was one of the most agonizing decisions Logan had ever had to make.  
  
Just after deciding what to do about their child. Incredibly, the seizure had not affected the baby. Fetal heart tones were fine, and a thorough examination had confirmed that the baby was in surprisingly little distress. The French doctor had a theory that the pregnancy was, as they had originally suspected, altering Max's seratonin levels. However, as her pregnancy progressed, exactly how those levels were altered started to change. In her first two trimesters, the seratonin in her brain had balanced off, probably because the baby in her womb required it. Now, the baby was taking all of Max's seratonin, her own levels dipping dangerously low. Unfortunately, there were no warning signs.   
  
Although the baby's health was not directly endangered by the seizures, there was the potential that another seizure would put Max into premature labor. Tests showed that the baby's lungs were slightly underdeveloped and a two-month premature delivery would be iffy. However, if the baby stayed inside Max's body, it would continue to sap off her seratonin, endangering her own life.  
  
Max and Logan had discussed such a possibility of such an emergency after returning from France, in the event that it would be a choice between Max's health and that of their baby's. Max had been adamant. She wanted him to do everything to save their baby, even if it meant risking her own health.  
  
"Max," he had asked, tears choking him. "How can you ask me to do that? I can't decide between your life or hers." They had told the doctor they wanted to be surprised, but the still kept referring to the baby as a she.  
  
"Logan," Max had said, sitting in his lap and pulling his arms around her expanded waist. "You might have to. And if you do, I want to know that you won't risk her life to save mine." He had tried to protest but she had silenced him, placing a finger to his lips. "I'm a Chimera, remember? We can survive nearly anything. This baby might be another story. She needs all the time she can get in here so she can have a change at surviving out here." Max's gaze had bored into him. "Logan, promise me," she had said.  
  
Now, a week after she had been admitted, for the very reasons they had discussed, Logan was dealing with his promise. Putting Max in a coma, administering the new anti-seizure drug and regular doses of magnesium sulfate to prevent further contractions, had all been so that the baby would get a better chance at survival. He had asked the doctors to wait ten days to see what effect the new medications had. If Max could pull through and her seratonin levels could restabalize, then there was to be no emergency C-section. If she couldn't, however, more decisions would have to be made.  
  
"Why did you make me promise, Max?" Logan asked, resting his head on her shoulder. He reached out and placed his hand atop her swollen belly. "I hope you appreciate all your momma's going through for you, little one," he whispered. He kissed Max's limp fingertips, listening to the hiss of the ventilator and the steady beep of the heart monitor.  
  
Just then, a nurse came in, pushing a cart full of needles and vials of blood. As she put the tourniquet on his beloved's arm, she told him, "Your wife is very strong, Mr. Cale."  
  
He tried to smile, "I know." Looking at the familiar night nurse, who he saw every evening take his wife's blood and check her vitals, he said, "Please, call me Logan." He never went home, even showering at the hospital. Bling had brought him come clothes and reading materials. Logan slept in the lounge or in a cot beside her bed; that is, if he slept at all. He did not want to leave her.  
  
"Have you been talking to her?" the nurse asked, nonchalantly drawing a vial of blood and checking her pulse.  
  
"All the time," he replied, stroking the inside of his wife's wrist. "I don't know if she hears me though," he admitted.  
  
"She does," the nurse assured him. Then she checked the heart monitor and pressed the doctor alert button above the bed.  
  
"What's wrong?" he asked in alarm.  
  
The nurse smiled reassuringly, "Nothing. They have ordered her taken off the respirator today." She frowned. "Weren't you informed?"  
  
Logan scrunched his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, removing his glasses, "Maybe." He sighed, "I don't remember."  
  
She smiled, "You look exhausted. I can try to find an empty quiet room for you to get some sleep in."  
  
He shook his head, "No thank you. Why did you ring the buzzer?"  
  
The nurse, whose name was Abby, began straightening the sheets. "Oh, I can do it, but the attending has to be here to supervise. Hospital policy," she explained with a shrug.  
  
Moments later, a doctor Logan did not recognize entered and smiled at them both. "How's she doing?"  
  
"Reps are good, heart beat strong, pulse and blood pressure are nearly normal," Abby reported. "Shall we extibate?"  
  
The doctor nodded, "I don't see why not. Let's get her on 100% oxygen for the first six hours and see how it goes from there." The man tuned to him, "I'm sorry, I'm new to the case. And you are?"  
  
Logan held out a tired hand, "Logan, Logan Cale."  
  
"He's her husband," Abby said with a smile. The doctor nodded, and swept past Logan as she signaled she was ready to extibate.   
  
"Why don't you go for a walk, get a drink, stretch your legs, while we do this," the doctor suggested.  
  
Seeing Logan's hesitance, Abby smiled, "I'll come and find you when we've finished."  
  
Begrudgingly, he nodded and left the room, deciding on a cup of tea, a candy bar, and a bag of French fried onions from the vending machine at the end of the hall. A few moments later, he felt a hand on his shoulder. The nurse smiled and led him back down the hall. "How long have you two known each other?" she asked cordially.   
  
Logan smiled, "Since she was nineteen."  
  
"My," the nurse said. "That's a long time."  
  
"Not very, actually," he replied. "It feels like we met only yesterday."  
  
She chuckled, "I wish all husbands were as romantic as you."  
  
"She makes it easy to be," he told her. Then he sighed and abruptly turned violently, punching a wall. Abby cried out slightly in alarm, then signaled the security guards to back away. He rested his forehead against the cool concrete wall, banging his head lightly against it. He growled out of frustration and pain. She put a hand on his shoulder and led him back to the room. After seating him in the chair opposite Max's bed, the nurse examined his hand.  
  
"You're lucky you didn't break it," she commented, noticing the bruise from earlier. "You're going to have one hell of a bruise, though. I'll bring you some ice and some Tylenol for the pain."  
  
Logan did not respond. When Abby returned with the ice and medication, she found him once again beside his wife's bed, stroking her skin and her hair, speaking lovingly to her. The nurse made him swallow the Tylenol. "You know," she said quietly. "When we get the results of this blood test back, we'll be able to tell how well the new medication is working."  
  
Logan did not reply.  
  
Abby sighed. "Keep that ice pack on your hand until the swelling goes down," she told him, pushing the blood cart out of the room. Turning, she said, "And don't stop talking to her. Your voice might be what she needs to come out of this once we wean her off the meds. The longer she's in this..." She let her voice trail off.  
  
He nodded, silently filling in what she had not been able to say. "The longer she's in this, the less likely it is she will come out of it." Being careful of the IV and the other tubes they had in her, he gingerly slipped into bed with her and took her in his arms. Resting his head on top of hers, he murmured, "I miss you. Come back. I need you. I want to wake up with you again. I want to fall asleep with you again. I want to kiss you again. I need to look into your eyes. I need you. You can't leave me. We haven't had enough time." The tears fell and he closed his eyes, feeling her weight in his arms. "Don't leave me all alone."  
  
The only response he got was the steady bleep of the heart monitor. Somehow, feeling Max's chest rise and fall, hearing the steady noise, lulled Logan into a deep slumber. When he woke, it was nearly daylight. A quick glance at his watch told him it was nearly seven in the morning. He had slept for seven hours. Frantically, Logan looked down at Max. She was still unconscious. Just then, Logan realized there was someone else in the room. Looking up with a start, he saw Abby sitting in a chair across the room, reading a magazine.  
  
"Hey," she said, putting down her magazine. "I wondered when you were gonna wake up."  
  
He grinned slightly and slid reluctantly out of the bed, stretching the kinks out of his body. "Guess I was exhausted, huh?" He looked curiously at her, "What are you still doing here?"  
  
Abby stood, unable to keep the grin off her face, "I just wanted to tell you, we got the results of Max's latest blood work back."  
  
Logan's heart stopped. "And?" He gulped back the dryness in his throat.  
  
"She's responding well to the new medication." Abby smiled when she saw a relieved look of shock spread across his features. "We are going to start weaning her tomorrow. With any luck, you wife will wake up in a couple days. After that, she'll just need to take a couple of pills, some seratonin supplements, and get lots of rest, and both she and your baby will be fine."  
  
Logan staggered slightly. She reached out and gently sat him in a chair. "Thank you," he murmured.   
  
"Just doing my job," she replied. Then she gathered her things and left the room.  
  
When the shock had worn off, Logan found his cell phone and began making the excited calls.  
  
"Bling? Good news, Max is going to be okay."  
  
"Cindy, I just talked to a nurse. Max is gonna wake up soon. She's responding to treatment."  
  
"Walter, let me talk to Kendra. I don't wanna know what she's doing or what position she's in, I just want to talk to her. Kendra? Hey, it's Logan. No, everything is fine. I just got the news. Max is going to be fine."  
  
And true to Logan's promise, she was. One day, as Logan waited in anticipation, clutching her hand, Max had opened her eyes.  
  
When she opened them, or at least tried to, she found that her eyelids would not respond. She tried several more times before they complied. She immediately squeezed them shut again when bright lights assaulted her eyes. Gingerly, she opened them again, taking in her surroundings. She was in a white room, in an uncomfortable bed with stiff sheets and a thin blanket. She heard the steady beat of a heart monitor and felt a pinch in her hand. Looking down she saw she was filled with IV's and various other insundry tubes. Her hand brushed against something warm. She looked down again and found the head of her lover resting against her side. He appeared to be in a troubled sleep, and had evidently slumped over in the chair he had pulled up beside her bed. She tried to speak his name, but no sound came out; instead a sharp pain ran through her throat and she began to panic. Taking a deep breath, which was made deeper by the fact she had an oxygen tube up her nose, Max calmed herself and decided she would handle one thing at a time.   
  
Gingerly, Max stroked Logan's handsome face, feeling the rough stubble on his cheek. She ran her hand through his hair, massaging her fingers at the base of his neck, running her nails over his scalp, which she knew would send chills through him. He awoke with a start and bolted up in his chair, his eyes wide at what he saw.   
  
She smiled at him.  
  
He choked on his tears and took her face in his hands, covering it with kisses. His tears dampened her face and she held him to her as best she could, trying to soothe him. "I thought I'd lost you," he whispered.  
  
Max smiled and kissed his cheek. Then, realization ran through her and the panic began to set in. She forced her voice to work and croaked, "Logan, the baby, is it-?"  
  
"Everything's fine love," he assured her. "The baby was never in any danger, strangely enough. It was you we were worried about."  
  
"Can I have some water?" she asked. He got it for her. After she had quenched her parched throat, Max asked, "What happened?"  
  
Logan sighed, "They think the baby was sapping all your seratonin and it made you have a major seizure. We had to put you in a coma for the new meds to work. You've been out for about nine days."  
  
Max's eyes widened when she discovered she'd lost over a week of her life.  
  
Seeing her distress, Logan quickly moved to calm her, "Don't worry Max, honey, you didn't miss much." He chuckled. "I think everything on TV's been repeats anyway."  
  
That made Max smile. Eventually, Logan managed to pull himself away and find a doctor.   
  
Smiling contently, Max shut her eyes to rest them. She placed a hand on her stomach and thanked God that she and her baby were going to be all right. "Logan looks so tired," she thought. "I bet he got hardly any sleep this entire time." As she rested her eyes, max suddenly felt a presence enter the room. Her spider senses went into overdrive and her eyes shot open.  
  
To her unexpected horror, Max gasped when she saw who was standing in her doorway. The person was disfigured, with a semi-burnt face. Still, despite the scars, the identity of her visitor was unmistakable.  
  
"Lydecker."  
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See? I told you I wouldn't let them die! Bet I surprised you with Lydecker though, huh? LOL. I'll try to post the next chapter next week.  



	7. I'm In Chains

Author's note: Sorry this took so long everyone! My life got really hectic and crazy and I was unable to find time to write. Then, once I found the time, I wasn't sure where to go with the story. I'd had an arc, but it had changed slightly as I wrote each chapter. Anywho, I think I know where I want this to go. I hope you all like my decision. As always, the characters aren't mine, neither are any songs I might use. Thanks to Lady Callie and Evil Twin for being my betas. And now, on with the show...  
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Max struggled against the restraints that imprisoned her to the four-poster bed. She clenched her teeth in frustration and growled when she discovered for the millionth time that they would not budge. She was afraid for the child inside her to fight to strenuously; she had no desire for her child to be born prematurely. Especially not here.   
  
As far as she could tell, she had been held captive for approximately a week, give or take. She remembered the events of the past week with vivid and horrifying detail. She had awoken in the hospital from her nine day coma to find Logan exhausted yet delighted she was once again among the living. After he had gone to get a doctor, Lydecker had entered her room. She remembered the terror that had run through her veins at the sight of him. His face was scarred horrifically on one side, from the explosion, she assumed. One of his eyes was a mere slit, and behind the disfigured lid Max estimated there either was no eyeball, or very little of one. He wore burn gloves on his hands up to his second knuckles and walked with a noticeable gimp.   
  
Despite these physical disabilities, the resurrected military psychopath had managed to kidnap her from the hospital. He had come at an opportune time, when she was weak and too tired to put up any kind of a fight; not that she would have, for fear of her baby's life.   
  
With surprisingly little fanfare, good ol'Deck had unhooked her from her machines, tossed the IV bags in her lap, and deposited her in a wheelchair. He pressed a gun that was concealed in his jacket into her back and pushed her out of the room. Max looked over her shoulder as she was taken from her room, and saw Logan standing at the end of the hall, talking to her doctor and several nurses. Even though she had a weapon aimed at her back, Max took the chance and bellowed, "Looooooooooooooooooogan!"   
  
Her husband had looked up from where he was standing and hollered her name. He ran after them down the hall, calling for security guards and help. Lydecker calmly picked up the pace, kicking a supply cart over behind him, and put Max in an elevator. Logan reached the doors right before they closed. The burned military man had pointed the gun at Logan's face and said, "You survived a shoot out once, Cale, but I don't think you'll be as lucky this time. Are you willing to risk the life of your family on it?" Max remembered the bone-chilling laugh that had escaped Lydecker's mouth as the doors closed, cutting Max off from her husband. The last look Max saw on Logan's face was one of terror and sadness. Somehow, Lydecker had managed to avoid the hospital security and they exited the hospital through a side door. Before she knew what was happening, Max was in an old, beat up car, and they were driving away from the hospital.  
  
"You can't do this," she had said.  
  
"Guess what?" he said coolly. "I am."   
  
Frantically, Max tried to reason with him, "I just came out of a coma. I had the worst seizure of my life. My baby's in danger of being born premature. I need medicine to keep all of that from happening."   
  
He looked over at her, his one eye glinting, "You'll get what you need, Max. You have my word on it."   
  
He hadn't spoken another word to her since. He brought her meals, and stood there to make sure she ate them, but he never spoke. Amazingly, he had all the drugs she needed, making Max wonder if he had someone on the inside. Five days into her captivity, she got her answer.   
  
"You bitch!" she cried as Abby walked into the room. "I remember you from the hospital. You betrayed us. If anything happens to my husband or my baby, I swear to God-"  
  
Abby had smiled kindly and shook her head, "I assure you, no hard is going to come to any of you. Uncle Donald just needs your child to study how transgenics pass their genes on. When we discovered your child did not have the defective gene, he knew your child would be the one who could save the X-5s, and all the other Manticore flaws. The ones that haven't already been terminated, anyway."   
  
Max's eyes had widened in shock, "*Uncle* Donald? You mean you're related to him?"   
  
Abby had nodded as she checked Max's vital signs. "My parents died in 2009, not long after you and your siblings escaped. Uncle Donald took me in and raised me. He paid for my medical care, my education, everything. He's really been wonderful."   
  
"So this is how you're repaying him?" Max had asked. "By aiding and abetting a known, and presumed dead, murderer?"   
  
"He's not a murderer," Abby had replied sharply. "He's a soldier and a scientist. What you and the government did to him was shameful. If he can use your child to prove that there is a way to have all the benefits of X-5 genetics and none of the drawbacks, then he can try to get his project started again."  
  
"That will never happen," Max swore. "My husband won't allow it. Do you know how many people are going to be looking for us? I have ten genetically enhanced siblings who all hate your uncle. Who, by the way, we though was dead."   
  
"You thought wrong," Abby answered coolly, administering some drugs into Max's IV line. As she finished, Max had found herself growing drowsy.  
  
"You drugged me," she slurred.   
  
"You need your rest," Abby had replied, before Max slipped into a deep sleep.   
  
Now, two days later, Max prayed that she would be found. She did not want to spend the rest of her pregnancy tied to a bed in a warehouse on the Seattle waterfront. Nor did she want her baby born within a thousand miles of Lydecker, let alone be delivered in his presence. She felt the baby move inside her and whispered, "Stay calm little one. We're not ready for you yet. You hafta stay in there as long as you can, okay? I'm gonna try to do my part, but you have to help. Daddy's gonna get us out soon." She sighed and heard footsteps approach, "I hope."   
  
Lydecker entered her room carrying a tray of food. He set it on a bedside table and undid one of her handcuffs so she could eat. He sat in a nearby chair and watched silently as she ate. In a heavy silence, Max choked down the food after testing that there were not any "additives" in it. When she was done, she glared at Lydecker. "Why are you doing this?" He remained silent, stone faced. Angrily, Max swept the tray off her lap and sent it hurtling to the floor near his feet, "Damn you, answer me."   
  
Slowly, Lydecker rose to his feet. He walked towards her and roughly grabbed her wrist, locking her back up. He then gripped both her wrists and leaned forward, his grotesque face mere inches from her own. He stared at her intently with his one good eye and slowly replied, "I'm doing this in the name of science."   
  
Repulsed, Max hollered, "Bullshit! Let me go, you sick and twisted bastard, or I'll kill you!" She felt the baby inside her get restless and immediately, Max ceased her tirade. *Sorry baby. Momma will try to calm down, I promise* Max thought. Lydecker released her wrists and backed away from her. "At least say something to me," she muttered.   
  
He stopped and looked at her as if he was trying to translate a foreign language he barely knew. "What's the matter?" she asked venomously. "Did you forget how to speak while you were lost among the supposed dead? How did you escape anyway?"   
  
Lydecker returned to hit seat and folded his damaged hands in his lap. After a while, he spoke, "I chased you and Zach around the compound, trying to find you and capture you. When the explosions went off, I was thrown off a back patio where we used to entertain visiting high-ranking officials. I was half on fire, as you can tell, and I landed in the woods nearby. Abby worked in the infirmary and evacuated when she heard the gunfire. She found me and helped me escape before any of your damned sibs or the investigators found me and could finish me off."  
  
Max huffed, "So where'd you go in the mean time. I mean, you've been MIA for nearly three years Deck. Not that you were missed. What'd you do, recuperate on some tropical island, all expenses paid with that hefty wad o'cash you'd been receiving from the old government to test and torture poor defenseless kids?"   
  
"You were never poor and defenseless," he argued stoically. "I designed you not to be."   
  
"Thanks for nothing," she muttered. "Maybe you should have triple checked the blueprints before you went around screwing with the children of confused young mothers-to be."   
  
Lydecker leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, "That's why I want your baby, Max. Your baby is the key."   
  
Maternal instinct took over Max and her temper flared, "You're not going to lay one finger on this baby, do you hear me? I'd rather kill us both then let her end up in those mangled stubs you call hands."   
  
Lydecker chuckled, obviously unconcerned with her threat, and called, "Abby!" Seconds later, Abby scurried in like a trained animal. "I think Max needs a nap," Lydecker suggested, casting Max a bitter glance. "Why don't you help her get some rest?" He exited the room, not giving Max a second glance over his shoulder.   
  
Abby pulled a vile and syringe from her pocket and silently injected the drug into Max's IV. Max felt the drug coarse through her system and tried to fight its effects. Abby smiled and said softly, "Don't fight it Max. Just get some rest."   
  
Before she could formulate a reply, Max was forced into another deep slumber.   
  
* * *   
  
She found herself standing in a field. The significance to her was obvious-she knew she was asleep and this was one of her dreams. Looking down, she found she was wearing a long dress of white muslin silk; it tied corset-style in the back, had no sleeves, and lapped at her ankles as it was whipped by fragrant breezes. Her pregnant belly protruded from her body and Max rested a hand on it, feeling the baby move inside her. It seemed to be swimming, happily. Wherever they were, both mother and child felt safe. She was barefoot; her toenails were painted a light pink, as were her fingernails. Max frowned, because she had never been girly enough for nail polish. Not even in her dreams. Her hair was hanging loosely about her shoulders, dancing in wind, a crown of flowers upon her head. She felt something cool against her ankle and found she was wearing a silver ankle bracelet. Stooping, she removed it and read the inscription on the back of the silver heart charm: **'To the Mother of my Child, Who is Always and Forever in my Heart.'**  
  
"I haven't given that to you yet!" a voice sounded over the hills.   
  
Startled, she looked up and squinted in the bright sunlight. Coming up over the hill was her husband. Logan was dressed in khaki pants and loose button down shirt that was un-tucked. He had sunglasses over his eyes and a bouquet of wild flowers in his hand. When he reached her, he presented her with the flowers, kissed her deeply, and pulled her across his lap as he sat them down on the grass.   
  
"You're going to get a stain on your pants." she remarked, running her fingers through his hair. The sunlight was bright and she closed her eyes, leaning against his shoulder. She dug her toes into the cool green grass and felt the ants run over them. Fingering his sunglasses, she asked, "You got any of those for me?"   
  
Logan looked pensive, as if trying to make a pair of sunglasses appear for her. Dejected, he shook his head, "No."   
  
Max smiled, "That's all right. I haven't learned to manipulate the dreamscape either."  
  
He ran his hand up and down her back, "So is this your dream or mine?"  
  
She held her ankle up in the air and examined it. The silver bracelet caught the sunlight and gleamed. "I'm thinking yours," she replied.  
  
His hand snuck underneath the skirt of her dress and he ran it up and down her smooth leg, coming to rest on her knee. He applied pressure and brought it down from the extended leg lift she had been holding it in. "It's ours," he whispered huskily in her ear. His arms went around her waist and rested, as they usually did, on top of her pregnant stomach. She giggled as his breath tickled her skin. A slight gasp escaped her lips as he trailed kisses up and down the sides of her neck. She caught his mouth with hers and gave him a long and lingering kiss. The intensity of it left them breathless. When they parted, she turned in his lap and rested against his chest, listening to the gentle "thump-thump" of his heartbeat.   
  
After a time, she pulled away, picking a dandelion from the grass. "So where are we?" she asked, turning the flower upside down and lazily running it up and down his arms.   
  
"Here," he replied.   
  
Max sighed, "If you don't stop this cryptic crap, I'm going to kick your ass when I wake up."   
  
"I wish you would," Logan murmured, inhaling her scent.  
  
"Kick your ass?" she asked, startled. She shook loose of his arms and turned to face him. She rested on her knees, the skirt pooling around her.   
  
He took her hands and kissed her fingertips, "Wake up." He paused, amending, "Come back, actually. I'm trying to find you."   
  
"I know," she replied, her voice tinted with sadness.   
  
"How are you?" he asked, lightly nibbling her ear.   
  
Max looked out upon the vast acres of open land. "I'm good enough, I guess. I want to come home."  
  
"We're trying to find you," Logan replied. "Me, Matt, your sibs. Zach has been searching nonstop. So have I."   
  
"And you totally wiped yourself out, apparently, otherwise we wouldn't be here," Max teased, squeezing his hand.  
  
"How is he treating you?" Logan asked, his voice full of concern.   
  
"Like a queen," she answered sarcastically. "He's got me handcuffed to a bed, and he brings me meals and stuff." She stopped, "Logan, you should know, that nurse from the hospital, she's in on it. She's his niece."   
  
Logan sighed, "I wondered if he had someone on the inside to pull all this off."   
  
Max nodded, "She's giving me all the meds we need, and she sedates me whenever Lydecker commands her to."   
  
"You're sedated now, aren't you?"   
  
"I tried pumping him for information and I guess he got tired of me, because he snapped his fingers and she came running. She's how he survived. She worked at Manticore too."  
  
Logan smoothed her hair, "It's okay Max. You didn't know."   
  
"Logan," Max said, terror filling her voice. "He wants our baby. He wants to study her to figure out how to control the seizures. He figures if he can prove that the flaw can be eliminated, the new government will let him reopen Manticore."   
  
Max could have sworn she heard Logan growl, "None of that is going to happen. We're going to find you first." He kissed her neck, face, and forehead. "I love you Max."   
  
"I love you too Logan. Find me. Fine me." She could feel them being pulled apart. One of them was waking up.   
  
"I promise!" Logan said frantically, feeling them wrenched away from each other. He had a feeling he was waking up.   
  
"Hurry Logan!" Max called before vanishing.   
  
* * *  
  
Logan Cale sat up with a start. He was drenched in sweat, and the bed sheets were knotted around his body. His chest heaved as he struggled to catch his breath. The dream had felt so real. Had he actually shared another dream with Max? Was what she had said true? Was Abby truly involved in this? He had to find out.   
  
Logan propelled himself out of bed and hurried around his room to dress himself. Tugging a sweater over his head as he walked down the hall, Logan called, "Cindy? Bling? Tinga? Anyone still here?"   
  
"Wassup boo?" Cindy asked. She was sitting in the kitchen with Tinga as Bling tried to make them some food. One of them had been staying with Logan, even though he had insisted he didn't need a babysitter. He figured they were worried he was going to do something rash and impulsive and get himself killed. They were right to worry. It had been Tinga who had made him lie down and get some rest. She had threatened to beat his ass in otherwise.   
  
"Find Zach," he said to her. "Get the others." The determined look in his eyes told Tinga all she needed to know and she nodded, leaving quickly.   
  
Bling set the half-cooked ramen noodles away from the heat and asked, "What's going on Logan? Why the call for the Avengers to assemble?"   
  
Logan grabbed apiece of fruit out of the fruit bowl on the counter and munched on it, "I think I know whom the person was Lydecker had on the inside."   
  
"Who?" Cindy asked, regarding Logan with a curious and strange look.   
  
"Abby, that night nurse who told me Max was gonna be okay. She's related to this, I can feel it." Logan was aware at the irony of his choice of words.   
  
"So what's the plan?" Bling asked.   
  
Logan stopped eating his apple, "We find her and follow her. Hopefully, she'll lead us to Lydecker."   
  
Cindy smacked the counter top with her palm, "Aiight boo, let's get operation Save Max underway. What are we waiting for?"   
  
"Zach and the others," Logan replied. He glanced out the window and willed his thoughts to his captive wife.   
  
*Hang on Max, we're coming. Just hang on. *   
  
  
  



	8. A Hunting We Will Go

Author's Note: You guys just want and want and want, don't you? Hehehe...I write as fast as I can you guys. Sheesh. Sorry this took so long but my internet connection was disabled for three days. Also, just a note on the X-5s. I've read the spoilers for the eps until the end of the season, but until I seem them myself, I don't know who's good and who's not, who lives and who doesn't...therefore, they're ALL working in my story. And I could have sworn during "Kidz" they listed an X-5 named Johnny, but I am the only one who heard, I guess. And I never heard of an X-5 named Ben until today. Oh well, I'll fit him in somehow. Okay, back to our regularly scheduled program. Anywho, here's chapter eight for your viewing pleasure. I hope this makes you all happy. As always, the characters aren't mine and neither are the songs I use. Thanks to Callie and Evil Twin for being my kick-ass beta's. Peace. Out.  
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"So let me get this straight," Zach said, looking suspiciously at Logan, who sat on a kitchen stool in the middle of the living room. "You and Max shared a dream and she told you that a nurse from the hospital was Lydecker's niece, who, along with Lydecker, has been keeping Max hostage somewhere," Zach indicated the expanse of Seattle, which could be seen through the large window, with his hand, indicating his disbelief.   
  
Logan sighed, "I know it sounds crazy, but it's not the first time Max and I have shared a dream. I think it has to do with the transfusions she gave me six months after the shooting."   
  
Zane, a closet scientist, nodded, "It would make sense with everything I've read about the recombinant DNA they pumped us full of. If we were to chare blood in the field, it would theoretically draw us closer, make us even more of a single unit, a team."   
  
Jace, who had been in the city with Little Max since Max the First went into the hospital, looked at Zach and said to the assembly, which included Jondy, Tinga, Johnny, Bling, Original Cindy, Syl, Brin, and Krit. "Okay, so we go with what Logan says then. This Abby chick has been playing both sides and is in bed with the enemy."   
  
"So what the hell are ya'll waiting for?" Cindy asked exasperatedly. "Whack the bitch and find my boo and Lil Boo."   
  
"It's not that simple," Logan told her kindly.   
  
Zach sighed, "Fine, whatever. Let's go with the theory that you and Max really did commune on the dreamscape, as you called it." The CO's voice was not without its share of sarcasm. "What do you suggest we do about it?"   
  
Tinga stepped forward, "We need to find Nurse Hatchet. Logan hacked into the hospital employee database and found out where she's listed as living. Lydecker has already seen you and Jace, and he could have described you two to her. We are gonna run on the assumption that she encountered Brin when they recaptured her. That means one of us Lydecker and Abby have never seen-Jondy, Johnny, Zane, Syl, or Krit-is going to have to go with Logan to talk to her."   
  
"Why Logan?" Bling asked.   
  
"She knows me," Logan informed him. "She won't be as suspicious of me as she will of someone she doesn't know."   
  
"In the meantime," Brin said, having worked out a possible plan with Tinga on the way back to Foggle Towers. "Some of us are gonna do recon. Talk to her co-workers; find out about her hangouts; who she associated with, what she liked to do to unwind. We need to find out if she ever mentioned an uncle or working on a military base."   
  
"We can do that," Cindy said, looking at Bling, who nodded in agreement.   
  
"I'll go too," said Jace. "Johnny and Tinga should as well, to make things go faster."   
  
Zach crossed his arms over his chest. He was CO. He was supposed to be making plans. "Okay, fine, now that you've all delegated responsibility to yourselves, what the hell do you want me to do?"   
  
Tinga rolled her eyes, "If Jondy and Syl go with Logan, then that leaves Zane, you, and Brin free to do some research."   
  
"Research!" Zach exclaimed. He was designed to be a field op, not some poor shmuck stuck behind a desk.   
  
Logan held back his laughter, "I've already started a program on my computer looking for abandoned buildings close to area hospitals. They searched all the ones close to the hospital, but Lydecker had a car and could have taken Max anywhere within twenty-five square miles of the city. He wouldn't go much farther than that because of her health." A pang struck Logan's heart as he talked about his wife and their child she was carrying as though she were just another Eyes Only mission. He took a deep breath and continued, "You know the kind of places Lydecker thought were ideal for missions like this. Narrow the search parameters and see what you can find."   
  
Zach huffed, "I've been searching those buildings since he nabbed her from the hospital. I would have come across them if they were there."   
  
Original Cindy growled in frustration and exclaimed, "Look, shorty, I know you've got a case of testosterone poisoning that's probably got something to do with those mutha-friggin genes the feds shot you up with. But could you please put your penis envy on the shelf, suck it up, and just work with these people so we can get my boos back?"   
  
The assembled tried not to snicker. Some had widened eyes, having rarely seen anyone other than Max stand up to Zach like that. Logan bowed his head to hide his grin. Tinga and Jace crossed their arms and glared at Zach, daring him not to help. Zane, Krit and Johnny exchanged bemused glances, while Bling backed away from Original Cindy, fearful she was going to explode in her rage.   
  
Zach emitted a noise that could only be described as a feral growl, sighed heavily, and wordlessly nodded his head in resigned agreement. "Everyone meet back here at nineteen hundred hours for a debrief."   
  
"Whatever," Cindy muttered, grabbing Bling's hand. "Let's move, homeboy." Jace, Johnny, and Tinga followed them out of Logan's apartment, discussing who would go where. Jondy and Syl approached Logan. Jondy smiled encouragingly and held out her hand to her brother-in-law, which is how most of the X-5s thought of Logan.   
  
"You ready?" she asked warmly. He smiled back at her and got off his stool. He watched as Zach brushed past him and headed for the computer room. Brin paused and touched Logan's arm, "We'll have her back by tonight, I promise you Logan."   
  
"Thanks," he replied, and allowed Jondy and Syl to lead him out the door. When they arrived at Abby's apartment, after the transgenics determined that no one was inside, Logan entered and the three began hunting around. They discovered that Abby was a fan of 1970s rock music, an avid horror novel fan, a collector of stamps, and an animal lover, judging by the stacks of animal related literature, stuffed animals, and pictures of safaris. What they did not discover, however, was any evidence of where she and Lydecker might be keeping Max.   
  
To their disgust, they saw pictures around the apartment of Abby as she grew, with Uncle Don by her side every step of the way; high school graduation, undergrad diploma ceremony, nursing school, a day on the base. If they did not know the monster Lydecker truly was, they might have thought it was sweet that the orphaned girl had someone to take care of her. Too bad that someone was a sadistic military freak who had twisted her mind.   
  
Jondy pressed the play button on the answering machine, only for them to all be disappointed when it reported, "You have no new messages. You have no saved messages."   
  
Syl sighed, "Kills that idea."   
  
Jondy turned to Logan, "Now what?"   
  
Logan shrugged dejectedly, the air deflating out of him. He wanted to pick something up and hurl it at the bookcase in frustration. He had been so sure they would find something out about Abby during the trek to and through her apartment. Now that they had found nothing, he was losing some of the hope he had held that they would find Max and their child in time. He knew how terrifying it would be if Max went into labor in captivity. The chances that something would go wrong with either her or the baby were extremely high. Logan had been trying to ignore that possibility for a week, convinced they would be found. As each day passed and they were no closer to finding where Lydecker was keeping Max, Logan grew increasingly dejected. He picked up a glass paperweight, prepared to bounce it off the nearest wall. Jondy gasped and prepared to intercept the glass baseball. Suddenly, something caught Logan's eye.   
  
As Jondy and Syl watched in silence, Logan dropped the paperweight back on the desk and crossed to the bookshelf. He took a large hard cover book off the shelf, and stared at the cover for several minutes. His in-laws exchanged worried glances and edged closer to him. "Logan?" Syl ventured cautiously, wondering if the altruistic man who stood before them had gone off his rocker.   
  
Logan looked up at them and laughed outright. "I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner," he mumbled.   
  
"Think of what, Logan?" Jondy asked.   
  
Logan smiled and showed them the cover of the book. AN ANIMAL LOVER'S GUIDE TO SOUTH AFRICA.   
  
"I don't get it," Syl muttered to Jondy, who, for her part, could merely shrug in response. Logan pulled out his cell phone and dialed his home number. Zach picked up.   
  
"Miracle Boy, I still have an hour and fifteen minutes before I have to make my report. What in hell are you calling for?" Zach asked, his furious typing echoing through the phone connection.   
  
"Hello to you too," Logan mumbled. "I just had a thought."   
  
"So you want me to get it noted by a republic?" Zach asked snidely.   
  
"Again with the Manticore wit," Logan retorted, used to the banter. "Listen, I think I might have figured out a way to track Max. I need you to make a conference call between you, myself, and my friend Sebastian. His number is in the database." Logan paused, grinning mischievously, "You do know how to do that, don't you soldier boy?"   
  
Jondy and Syl exchanged amused glances.   
  
"You're funny, Rich Boy, real funny," Zach muttered. "Hang on." Within the minute, he had conferenced himself, Logan and Sebastian.   
  
"Logan?" Came the automated voice, something that took Zach by surprise.  
  
"Yeah Seb, I need your help," Logan said into his phone, sitting on Abby's couch.   
  
"What can I do?" Sebastian asked. "Max has been kidnapped. Lydecker took her right from the hospital."  
  
"Did she have the baby?" Sebastian asked. He had known Max and Logan were pregnant, but had been out of the country for several weeks at a scientific conference. He had only recently gotten back to Seattle.   
  
"No," Logan said, the relief evident in his voice. "But she had some bad seizures and ended up in a coma. Lydecker took her and he's been hiding her for the past week. We need to find her, fast."   
  
"Of course," the quadriplegic genius agreed. "How can I help?"   
  
"I just had a thought," Logan said, eyes twinkling. "Max still has a tiny bit of that neuro-chip from the Reds in her, right?"  
  
"Yes."   
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Zach chimed in. "What the hell is a Red?"   
  
"Who's that?" Sebastian asked.   
  
"The brother I keep telling you about," Logan replied. "Zach, the Reds were a group of South African ex-cons who were turned into supersoldiers by implanting a neuro-chip into the brain stem. Their mission was to find the X-5s to steal Manticore technology because they were having neurological problems of their own. They kidnapped Original Cindy to get to Max and Max decided she would have a better chance of going up against them if she were playing on their turf. She still has part of the chip in her."   
  
"Now I get it," Syl whispered to Jondy, referring to Logan's strange behavior moments earlier.   
  
Zach sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, looking at Brin and Zane tiredly. He had put the call on speaker for them all to hear. "Okay, fine, she's part tin man. How is that going to help us find her?"   
  
Thankfully, Sebastian had caught on, "If I'm given a small enough area to search, I can trace the signature of the chip in Max's system. It should lead us right to her location."   
  
"Zach," Logan asked. "Did you guys narrow the search parameters at all?" "  
  
We've narrowed it down to an area of fifteen square miles," Brin informed him.   
  
"It might take a bit longer," Sebastian said. "But I should still be able to track it. Logan, I'm tapping into your system and download the specs now."   
  
"How soon can you get us a location?" Zach asked before Logan had the chance to.   
  
"An hour," Sebastian replied.   
  
"Thanks my friend," Logan said gratefully. "Zach, Jondy, Syl, and I are coming back. Let the others stay out, just in case Abby manages to escape when we close in on her and good old Uncle Deck."   
  
"Got it," Zach said, and hung up his end.   
  
An hour later, the two recon teams returned to Logan's penthouse. The X-5s assembled in one room, quietly discussing strategy, while Bling helped Logan make a light meal and Cindy washed dishes from meals that had eaten earlier. Logan had been cooking for about an hour. It calmed him, soothed him, and took his mind off the fact that in a fairly short time, he and his genetically enhanced in-laws would be launching a full scale rescue mission to recover his pregnant, nearly full term, genetically enhanced wife. He had looked at the date on his watch and realized Max was nearly eight and a half months along. Feasibly, the baby could come at any time. The thought struck fear in him. They had to move. Fast.   
  
Just then, the phone in Logan's office rang. He abandoned the meal and raced into the computer room, where Zach and the others had gathered. Logan hit the speaker button and said, "Sebastian, talk to me buddy. What have you got?"   
  
"I'm uploading it to your system now," Sebastian told them. "I even took the liberty of downloading the blueprints for the building. I figured it would save you time."   
  
Logan smiled from ear to ear, "Sebastian, my friend, you have out done yourself."   
  
"You can repay me by sending me a cigar and telling your daughter all about her Uncle Sebastian," his friend said good-naturedly.   
  
Logan looked around the room, "Our child, boy or girl, is not going to be at a loss for aunt's and uncles, that's for damn sure." He heard several of them chuckle. "Thanks Seb. Bye."   
  
Zach hit a button and the blueprints began to print out. He looked at everyone gathered around and new each person was going to want to be a part of the mission. However, he had to wonder if it really took twelve people to take out a crippled psychopath and his niece. Using years of experience, he began to formulate a plan in his head.   
  
"By the looks of things," he said, examining Sebastian's Intel. "It's just Lydecker and his niece in this warehouse on the outskirts of the city near the waterfront they're holed up in."   
  
Johnny snorted, "No problem. We got in, take them out, grab Max, head back here. Five, ten minutes, tops."   
  
"Not so fast," Logan said, looking over Zach's shoulder. "It looks like Lydecker planned for us to find them eventually. He has the place heavily booby-trapped with explosives. According to Seb's data, Max is near the back, but the front and middle are totally rigged."  
  
Original Cindy sighed, "Now what?"   
  
Johnny grinned, "Still, not a total problem. I was the bomb expert, remember?" He clicked for the information to print out and examined it. "I'd have to see the stuff close up, but I think I might be able to get all the equipment I need to disarm it around here."   
  
Zach nodded, "Good, take Krit and Brin with you. Meet us at the location in forty-five minutes."   
  
The three transgenic adults nodded and left the pent house.   
  
"What next?" Bling asked, more than willing to help.   
  
Zach thought, "After the bombs, that just leaves Abby and Lydecker. She's a nurse and he's a cripple."   
  
"Whoa there, SuperBoo," Cindy said. "She's related to General Patton. What makes you think she ain't a kick ass like ya'll?"   
  
Tinga looked at Zach, "She's got a point."   
  
Cindy grinned self satisfactorily, "Thank you Shugga."   
  
"We're gonna need a team for each, plus a team for Max, and someone has to drive the escape vehicle," Jace commented, perching herself on the edge of the desk.   
  
"Aiight, children, Original Cindy volunteers for this gig." Max's friend smiled at Logan, who tossed her to keys to his Aztec.   
  
"Fine," Zach said. "Jace, and Zane, take muscles with you and get the nurse." He indicated Bling with the "muscles" comment. Bling merely brooded, but said nothing. Zach continued, once again resuming his role as CO of group X-5. "Jondy, Syl, and Tinga will be assigned to Lydecker. I'll assist as necessary. Logan and I will be assigned to retrieving Max." He turned to Logan and asked, "I don't suppose you've got any Comm units, do you?"   
  
Logan smiled, grateful Zach was swallowing his pride and allow Logan to rescue his own wife. "Of course I do. What Rich boy wouldn't?" He went to a closet in the hall and removed a shoebox full of Comm units. Emptying the box's content on the desk, he discovered that he only had six functional Comm units.   
  
"Each team leader will get one, plus Cindy and Logan," Tinga said, before Zach could argue or give another option. Zach huffed, as was become par for the course, and nodded indignantly. Jace, Tinga, Zach, and Logan all put the units, which were similar to Logan's computer phone earpiece, in their ears and attached the battery transmitter packs to their waistbands. Bling helped Cindy get acclimated with hers, while everyone began finalizing plans. Syl took the Comm unit for Johnny, Krit, and Brin's team. They decided that Cindy, Logan, and Zach would ride in his Aztec. Tinga had a bike of her own, and would take Jondy. Bling would take Syl, Jace, and Zane in his SUV. They all retreated to the kitchen to fuel up before raiding Logan's weapons closet.   
  
As they filed out the door, the X-5s in total game face, Logan thought to himself *Just a little longer Max, I promise*   
  



	9. Rescue Me....Come Take Me In Your Arms

Author's Note: Look! Finally, I wrote another chapter. I am so incredibly sorry this took so long. My life got exceptionally crazy (I graduated, etc) and the story got away from me. But it's back, for your reading pleasure. Obviously, I began writing this before the last six episodes of the season so this has spoilers up to "Haven" but stops after that Every episode that happened after that ("Pollo Loco" et all) hasn't happened in this universe this story is in. Oh and by the way, I figured out who the Johnny character is-he's Ben. Ben never went bad, Tinga never had Case nor was she married to Charlie. Lydecker's still the anti-Christ, and neither Max nor Zack died at Manticore. And now that I've seen Krit and Syl I will know how to better write them-notice I didn't use any pronouns with their names last time, being that I didn't know who had been cast in those roles?   
  
Author's note 2: If I have any misinformation in my stories (for example, my explanation of what MI-Fi is/was, please understand I have no comprehension of covert ops and intelligence agencies and am just going on what I thought the fool thing was). As always thanks to Lady Callie and Evil Twin for betaing. Aiight kidz, enough of my babbling...on with the show!  
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Max sighed and wrenched her wrists a little.   
  
Nothing.   
  
The handcuffs were secure. They were made out of some super metal that she couldn't break, even with her X-5 strength. Her ankles had become so swollen that Lydecker had been forced to remove the restraints from them. She half suspected he was almost ready to remove the handcuffs too. He knew she wouldn't run. She couldn't. She was too great with child. She was also too weak. Constant bed rest and repeated sedation may have been beneficial for the child within her, but Max had no strength left. Her legs were weak from disuse, even though Abby did some light physical therapy on her similar to what Bling used to do with Logan.   
  
Logan. Had they really shared a dream or had it been a side effect of all the drugs she was on? Not only were they pumping her with sedatives on a regular basis, but they were also giving her seratonin supplements and prenatal vitamins intravenously. She was sure there were nutrients in her food, but she had no choice but to eat them. She couldn't starve her baby. All she could do was hope Logan would find them before it was time for her to deliver. Faith in that was all that kept her from killing herself and her child. She would rather they both die then end up in Lydecker's hands. But as long as Logan was still out there and had everyone looking for her, then there was still be a chance. She couldn't harm her child. Especially not when her child's father was hell bent on finding them.   
  
Max knew, however, there was not much time left. She was nearing her eighth month. With each day, she could feel the child within her grow increasingly active, as though she were preparing for something. Abby had told her yesterday that the baby had "dropped." In other words, Little Boo was facing head down as everything was set for the birth. Max just prayed that her child knew enough not to arrive before Logan could rescue them.   
  
Their baby was strong. Of that, Max had no doubt. At the beginning of her pregnancy, Max and Logan had feared that their baby would be weak, like Tinga's little boy. Now Max was certain their child was strong. She had survived Max's seizure and coma, and the abduction. In many ways, Max knew that the baby was probably stronger than she was. Logan had told her before the abduction that the baby had been sapping her seratonin. The baby was taking what she needed from Max. Of that, Max was glad. She had been afraid her body would defend itself against her child. Instead, it was giving the baby everything it needed.   
  
But because of this, Max knew that there was a chance that she herself would not survive the birth. Or if she did, it would be a long and difficult birth that would probably require a long recovery. Max had no doubt that her X-5 genes, as much as they nearly killed her, had kept her alive. Anyone else, any mere human, would not have survived such a pregnancy. It was the definition of high risk.   
  
Being cooped up in a warehouse by Colonel Patton and the Niece of Mengelo gave her lots of time to think and dwell.   
  
Max closed her eyes and spoke silently to her child, "It's okay little one. Daddy's going to find us. He's going to bring Uncle Zack and Aunt Tinga and all your other aunts and uncles who already love you so much and they're gonna get us out of here. Then we can go home and be safe. Please don't think of making an appearance until we're home baby. It's not safe here. You can't be born yet. Please wait."   
  
"Time for lunch," Abby said, walking into the room with a metal tray and a sickeningly sweet smile on her face.   
  
Max's eyes flew open and she was glad she had been having the conversation with her daughter via her inner monologue.   
  
Abby set the tray on a swinging table she had borrowed from the hospital and placed it in front of Max. Lydecker's niece took the keys to the cuffs from her pocket and undid one of Max's restraints so that she could feed herself. "Eat up," the woman said, smiling. "You and your baby need to be strong." She uncovered the tray to reveal a grilled cheese sandwich, a pickle, and an apple. Two glasses, one with milk and one with water, sat next to the plate.   
  
Begrudgingly, Max picked up the sandwich and took a bite. "You stay the hell away from my baby," she murmured.   
  
"Now now now," Abby said, placing the stethoscope in her ears and warming the metal part. She lifted Max's T-shirt and listened to the sounds in her belly. After a few moments, she asked, "Would you like to listen?"   
  
Max swallowed her food and nodded. Truthfully, she listened to her baby's heartbeat at night via her own enhanced hearing. But she was determined to play to good patient. No use pissing them off before Logan came and saved them.   
  
***********  
  
The Avengers assembled on a hill that overlooked the warehouse. The hill was thickly covered with tall grass and weeds, giving them easy camouflage. They were gathered around the motorcycles and Bling and Logan's cars, making last minute arrangements. Cindy was sitting in the Aztec, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel, listening as her boo's family planned her rescue.   
  
Johnny had the bomb squad equipment on the hood of Logan's car, next to one of Logan's laptops.   
  
"I've hacked into an old M.I. Fi satellite with a working infrared camera. It should pass over in about five minutes, giving us some better idea of what kind of hardware they've booby trapped the place with," Logan said to his in-laws, all of whom looked primed for battle. They were in small groups, based on their assignments. Bling was with Jace and Zane, discussing how they would capture Abby. Syl, Jondy and Tinga had been assigned to Lydecker, while Krit and Brin were going to help Johnny with the explosives. Original Cindy was going to wait for her signal to bring the car around, while Logan and Zack were going to go in through the back.   
  
"It's up," Logan called. The X-5s gathered around the laptop, looking at the infrared readout from the satellite. MI-Fi had been an intelligence agency similar to the CIA and the KGB during the Cold War of the Twentieth Century. It disbanded in the wake of the collapse of the Berlin Wall. Rumor had it on the Informant Net that MI-Fi and others had spawned a super secret intelligence agency for covert ops and anti-terrorism from the 1960s up until the time of the Pulse. According to the rumors Logan had read, said super agency was exterminated when they failed to stop the Pulse. Nevertheless, Logan had been able to hack into the spy satellite. The warehouse was long and rectangular. The front half of it was heavily booby trapped by landmines and trigger wire bombs.   
  
"I'll stay here and navigate you around the bombs," Johnny said to his brother and sister who nodded.   
  
"Once you get through the mine field, is there a way you can detonate them all at once?" Zack asked. "It would create a diversion to get the other teams in."   
  
Johnny nodded, "There'll all relatively small charges. Big enough to take a limb, but not big enough to take out the warehouse. It looks like if you set one off, they'll all go off."   
  
"That should give us the diversion we need," Jondy said. "Cause if I'm seeing things right, it looks like Lydecker is here." She pointed to a small-portioned room two thirds of the way in where a large warm figure lay, apparently resting. "That's too big to be a woman."   
  
"Max is nearly eight months pregnant," Krit joked.   
  
Logan chuckled in spite of himself.   
  
"It's Lydecker," Zack said firmly, all business. "Jondy, take your team and enter through the south windows the minute the bombs go off. They should be enough of a distraction so that it will be an easy capture." He looked at his brothers and sisters. "Use any force necessary. We need him dead this time." Jondy, Syl, and Tinga nodded.   
  
"So where's Nurse Hatchet?" Bling asked.   
  
"Back here," Logan pointed to another portioned room. There are two smaller heat signatures. It's got to be Max and Abby."   
  
"It's Max all right," Bling said, looking at the readout. "Her heat signature ain't small my friend. That's your wife and your child."   
  
"Wait!" Brin said. "Look. They've got the back booby trapped too."   
  
Zack frowned and looked at the screen. "Johnny, what kind of explosives are we looking at now?"   
  
Johnny squinted, "Laser beam triggers. Walk through one, the whole set of them go boom."   
  
"How are we supposed to get through those?" Logan asked.   
  
Brin smiled, "I've got your back on this one. Johnny, they don't have a huge punch right? They're not going to blow up the whole building?"   
  
Johnny analyzed the data, "Negative."   
  
"Okay," Brin said. "I'll go with Logan and Zack. Johnny can guide Krit around the mine field in the front."   
  
"Once you're clear," Zack said to his brother. "Wait until my order to detonate the charges."   
  
Krit nodded.   
  
"Aiight, children," Original Cindy said from the car. "Are we ready to get this bitch under way or what?"   
  
Zack looked at the assembled, "You know what to do. Go in, terminate Lydecker, apprehend the nurse, and get Max out." He nodded brusquely. "Fall out."   
  
Krit got low and ran down the hill toward the front of the complex. Jondy, Jace, and Tinga ran at breakneck speed towards the south windows, making sure to stay out of Lydecker's sight. Bling, Zane, and Jace went with Logan, Zack and Brin towards the back. With hand signals, Zack directed Jace's team to head for the west windows, which were near the portioned room in which Max was being held. They would enter from the front and get Abby while Zack and Logan would enter from the back.   
  
"All teams, report," Zack said.   
  
"Alpha team, ready," Jace said.   
  
"Beta team, ready," Syl said.   
  
"I'm in position," Krit said.   
  
"Okay, Johnny," Zack commanded. "Guide him through."   
  
The teams listened quietly as Johnny steered his brother through the labyrinth of explosives. It took a good five minutes to safely guide him through. Logan held his breath until he heard Krit say, "Okay, I'm on the other side."   
  
Zack nodded to Brin and Logan and they began making their way into the back entrance. "Delta team, on the move," Zack said into his headpiece. He cocked his gun, as did Brin, and motioned Logan to stand clear. Counting down from three on his fingers, Zack and Brin opened the door and aimed their weapons, in case anyone else was there they had not detected. Save the explosives, it was clear.   
  
Logan raised a brow, "Now what?"   
  
***********  
  
Inside the warehouse, Max smiled at the strong sound of her daughter's heartbeat. After a few moments, Abby removed the stethoscope from Max's ears and said, "Okay, finish up your meal." Like an obedient patient, Max did as she was told, her hearing still in tune with her baby's heartbeat. As she had all those months ago, Max found that her own heartbeat was in perfect synchronicity with her child's. Her eyes bulged when she heard a third heartbeat in time with theirs.   
  
Logan's.   
  
Max gasped.   
  
Abby regarded her curiously, "Something wrong?"   
  
Max shook her head, "The baby has hiccups and it startled me."   
  
Abby smiled and nudged Max's glass of milk towards her, "Drink up."   
  
Max picked up the glass and zeroed in her hearing. Sure enough, it was Logan's heartbeat, in perfect rhythm with hers. He was here. That meant everyone else was too. The rescue was going to happen. Soon. Setting down the glass, Max looked at Abby. "I need to go to the bathroom."   
  
Abby nodded and unlocked Max's other handcuff. Then she took a gun from her waistband and trained it on Max. "Let's go."   
  
Cautiously, Max slid out of bed, unsteady on her feet. She steadied herself on the bedside table and began slowly making her way towards the port-a-john on the other side of the partition.   
  
************  
  
"All teams, hold!" Johnny said.   
  
""What's going on?" Zack asked.   
  
"Max and Abby are on the move," the X-5 reported.   
  
"We've been made," Jace said.   
  
"No," Johnny said. "It looks like they're headed for the bathroom."   
  
"Max is eight months pregnant," Zane said, chuckling.   
  
"She knows we're here," Logan said.   
  
Zack looked at him and sighed. "Alright. Little Sister's making sure she's free of restraints. No one move in until they've cleared the bathroom."   
  
Each X-5 and Logan held their collective breath, waiting for Johnny's report. After several minutes, it came, "Okay, they're on their way back."   
  
"Lydecker?" Jondy asked.   
  
"Still asleep," her brother reported.   
  
Zack nodded to Brin. The X-5 calmly walked through the entrance and crouched, picking up some dirt. She shook it around in the palm of her hand and lowered her lips to her skin, blowing the dirt into the beams. After examining the grid of beams for a moment, Brin turned and looked at Logan and Zack.   
  
"Duck," she said, backing up, rubbing her hands together.   
  
"All teams, get ready," Zack said. He looked at Brin, "Krit, Johnny, all teams, on my mark." He took a deep breath and nodded to Logan. "Three, two one."   
  
"Mark."   
  
Logan took shelter behind a pile of sawdust. Peering over the top, he saw Brin inhale deeply, her entire chest heaving with the effort. Seconds later she was running at top speed. Logan's eyes opened wide as he began to think she was not going to stop. However, just before she would have hit the beams, Brin jumped. More like...sprang. Landing on the other side of the first horizontal beam, the nimble Chimera did not waste any time in waiting for the bomb detonated by the vertical beam to go off; she back-hand springged over each laser, off the ground before the bombs had time to detonate. They were not too destructive, set to remove a foot at the least, a leg at the most. Just as Johnny had estimated.   
  
From the front of the complex, Logan heard explosions as well. He knew Krit had taken stones from his pocket and thrown them onto the mines, hitting each target with genetically engineered precision.   
  
"Alpha and beta teams, advance," Zack commanded.   
  
***********  
  
It seemed as though the world was ending. Every bomb in the place was going off, all at once. They had just made it back inside the makeshift bedroom when the world exploded. Abby looked around in shock. "What the hell?" Just then, they heard breaking glass and Lydecker yelling.   
  
Abby turned to Max and pointed the gun at her, "You bitch."   
  
Max stared at the gun, "Sorry sweetie. Looks like I'm going home." Her bravado was a façade. She inwardly prayed her rescuers would arrive before Abby pulled the trigger, or Lydecker got there with reinforcements.   
  
What Max didn't know was that Lydecker was in the middle of a fight of his own. Awakened by the sound of explosions, he had found three of his kids training guns at him. The three women had no nonsense looks on their faces, daring him to fight back. He sat straight up on his cot and said, "So you've come to take me in huh?"   
  
"No," Jondy said. "We've come to kill you."   
  
"You're not going to get away with what you did to our sister," Tinga sneered.   
  
"What did I do?" Lydecker asked, slowly rising from his bed, even though three rifles were trained on him. "I was trying to help you kids, stop the seizures." He stopped in front of a small table. "You have no idea what you kids mean to me."   
  
"Save it," Syl snapped.   
  
Suddenly, Lydecker pulled a gun off the table and trained it on them. "I'm not going down without a fight," he said.   
  
Jondy looked at her sisters and smiled, "Then we'll give you a fight, Deck."   
  
Truly, the fight was unmatched. Lydecker may have taught his kids their fighting techniques, but he was only human. Not to mention he was scarred and disabled. Had he been at full health, the fight would have been a bit more equally matched. But fighting three genetically enhanced females in his physical condition was suicide.   
  
But Donald Lydecker was a soldier. He wasn't going to go down without a fight.   
  
Jace and Zane leapt through the glass, with Bling close behind, and made a dash for the room where Abby had a gun trained on Max. They broke down the partition and aimed their weapons at Abby.   
  
"Max, go!" Bling yelled.   
  
Abby spun around and began firing her weapon at the two X-5s and Bling. Stray bullets ricocheted off steel beams and wooden walls. The X-5s, however, did not fire back. Max was slow in escaping, slowed down by her weight and child, and would have been easily hit by their bullets. Instead, they dove for cover, Jace taking Bling down with her.   
  
Max ambled behind the bed and took cover. "I'm clear!" she yelled to her brother and sister.   
  
With feral roars, Jace and Zane popped to their feet, firing at the nurse. In truth, they didn't want her dead, but immobilized. Many of their bullets simply whizzed by her, but it was enough to unnerve her and send her to the floor, cowering in hear. She cried out as a bullet grazed her leg. Bling walked over to her and looked down at her whimpering frame.   
  
"Some nurse you are," he muttered, and clocked her over the head with the butt of his rifle.   
  
During the hale of bullets, Zack and Logan had advanced towards Max's location. Zack broke down the back wall of the partition during the gunfire and pushed Logan through, keeping his brother in law close to the ground, knowing Max would never forgive him if anything happened to her husband.   
  
Logan spotted Max hiding behind the bed and crawled towards her. "Max!" he cried.   
  
Max gasped when she saw him and through herself into his arms, weeping. He kissed her face and eyes, never stopping touching her. They had been apart for too long.   
  
"Are you alright?" he asked, his worry shining brightly in his eyes. "Did they hurt you?" Logan began searching her for bruises and wounds. "You didn't get hit did you?"   
  
"I'm fine," Max said, falling into her husband's arms. "We're both fine. Everything's okay now." She held on tightly to Logan, her head at his chest, listening to his heartbeat.   
  
Logan nearly wept to have his wife back in his arms. He felt the growth of her belly pressed against his body and felt the child move within her. Their family was once again reunited. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled her scent. It was an aphrodisiac, a fragrance that had been missing too long. Feeling his wife in his arms, their child within her, reunited after so long, was overwhelming for long. He tightened his embrace and began to weep. "It's okay now," he repeated softly, crying into her hair. "It's okay now."   
  
Zack, for his part, kept the couple covered during the firefight. Seeing their display of emotion and outright joy at being reunited made him uncomfortable. He felt as though he was intruding. He stood and looked at his siblings.   
  
"She's out," Zane announced.   
  
"All teams, report," Zack said, stepping away from his sister and brother-in-law to give them a bit of privacy.   
  
"I'm making my way back towards the rendezvous point," Krit announced.   
  
"All explosives have been neutralized," Johnny said.   
  
"Cindy, get on the move," Brin said.   
  
"Comin' sugah," Cindy replied from the Aztec.   
  
"Lydecker's been terminated," Jondy said, her voice ringing across the Comm units.   
  
Zack's breath caught, "Repeat."   
  
"Lydecker's been terminated," Jondy said again, the joy creeping into her voice.   
  
"He's dead Zack," Tinga said.   
  
"It's over," Syl muttered.   
Logan kissed Max's temple, their tears subsiding. "Ready to go home?" he asked.   
  
She looked up at him and smiled, "Yes we are."   
  
Logan helped Max to her feet, keeping an arm securely around her waist. But weeks of disuse had begun to atrophy Max's leg muscles and after the strenuousness of walking to and from the bathroom, they gave out. Max let out a cry and Logan immediately caught her. "Are you alright?" he asked, concern in his voice. "Maybe we should get you to a hospital."   
  
"I'm fine," Max said, holding on to him. "My legs are just a little weak. I haven't really walked in a month."   
  
Zack stepped towards them. "You want me to do it?" he asked Logan.   
  
Logan smiled, knowing Zack wasn't trying to be overbearing. "No," he replied. "I got her." He slung one of Max's arms around his neck and crouched, scooping her up in his arms. She held on tightly, burying her face in Logan's neck.   
  
"Wait!" she cried, halting Logan in his tracks.   
  
"What's the matter Maxie?" Brin asked, coming into the room.   
  
"Where's Lydecker?" Max asked, her eyes wild.   
  
Logan, Zack, and the other X-5s exchanged looks.   
  
"Where is he?" Max asked, her voice edged with anger and hysteria.   
  
"Max, calm down," Logan said softly. "The baby-"   
  
"The baby's fine," Max snapped. "Where is Lydecker?" She looked at Zack. "Tell me!"   
  
Zack stepped towards her, "He's dead Maxie. Jondy's team took him out."   
  
Max let out a sigh of relief and said firmly, "I want to see him."   
  
Logan knew better than to argue. He followed Zack and carried her into the other part of the warehouse. Jondy, Syl, and Tinga were standing over Lydecker's body, which was covered by a blanket. "The face," Max said. "I want to see his face."   
  
Logan set her down in front of him, holding her tightly from behind. Tinga stooped down and pulled the blanket away from his face. The scarred skin was splattered with blood and his eyelids were closed. You couldn't even tell which one was missing an eyeball behind it.   
  
"It's over, honey," Logan whispered in her ear. "It's finally over."   
  
"He's gone, Maxie," Jondy said.   
  
Max looked away from Lydecker's body and into her husband's eyes, "Take me home Logan, please. I don't want to be here anymore."   
  
Kissing Max's forehead, Logan once again scooped her up in his arms. "Cindy, you here?" he asked.   
  
"I'm in the back, Moneybags." Original Cindy replied. "You got my boo?"   
  
"Hey Cindy," Max said into her husband's Comm unit.   
  
"Hey boo," Cindy said, the smile audible over the connection.   
  
"All units, fall back," Johnny said. "Police approaching."   
  
"Okay, everybody get gone," Zack commanded.   
  
"What about the nurse?" Tinga asked.   
  
"Matt will take care of her," Bling said, coming into the room. "But we all have to go. Now."   
  
The X-5s all jogged out of the building, some following Max and Logan, some coming the way they had came. However, all managed to make sure their egress route took them past Lydecker's body. Just as Max had needed closure, so did they. They needed to know it was over. And seeing his bullet-riddled body brought them that closure. He was most definitely gone. Their nightmare had finally ended.   
  
"See you later little sister," Tinga called as she and Jondy rode away on her motorcycle. Krit and Johnny had already made tracks, while Syl, Jace, Zane and Brin piled into Bling's SUV, calling similar greetings of gladness and farewell to their sister, who was safe in the arms of her husband in the backseat of their car. Zack climbed into the front seat next to Original Cindy.   
  
"Where to Miss Daisy?" Original Cindy asked, chuckling.   
  
"Home," Max and Logan said in unison.   
  
"You're absolute sure you don't need to be checked out by a doctor?" Zack asked.   
  
"I'm okay big brother," Max said. "I've been poked and prodded enough by medical types over the last month. I just want to go home."   
  
Logan kissed her cheek and held her tighter, "Take us home Cindy."   
  
"No problem boo," she answered, steering the car towards Foggle Towers. In the side mirrors, Zack watched the cops pull up and surround the building. Good thing a contingent of X-5s had made their job easier. He wondered what they would think when they found an unconscious nurse with a gunshot wound and dead man already presumed dead.   
  
Cindy looked in the rearview mirror and saw Max and Logan cuddling in the back seat, their hands on her belly. "If that isn't a Hallmark card, I don't know what is," she remarked.   
  
Zack turned and looked at his sister and her family. "It's all good now huh?"   
  
"Yeah," Original Cindy said. "It's all good." She smiled and looked at Max's brother. "Original Cindy thinks it's gonna be all good, all the time from now on." By the looks of things in the backseat, Max resting against Logan's chest, her eyes closed, Logan's chin resting atop her head, his fingers laced with hers on her pregnant stomach as she lazily traced patterns on one of his arms, Original Cindy felt in her gut that things for her boos were going to be okay.  
  



	10. Home Should Be Where the Heart Is

Author's notes: Here it is, Chapter 10. This is going to be a fifteen chapter story, so don't worry. There's a lot more to come! While the pregnancy *is* a central plotline, I can go into others once it's over. This is an AU fic with the potential for spoilers up to "Haven." However, pretty much, nothing after "Female Trouble" has happened. Ben's good (even though I call him Johnny in this fic), Tinga doesn't have a husband named Charlie or a kid named Case, nor is she dead, Zack's alive, Max has her own heart thankyouverymuch and Manticore went down my way. As always, any songs I use in any way, shape, or form are not mine, nor are any of the Dark Angel characters-they belong to Chick and Cameron. Thanks, as always to my incredible betas, Lady Callie and Evil Twin. Also, a huge thank you to the fans of this fic-it is you all for who I write this fic.  
______________________________________________________________________________  
  
  
Home is where the heart is. Never were words so true. Under her own power, nevertheless firmly held by Logan, Max entered their apartment and took a deep breath. She looked around the apartment and realized she hadn't seen the inside of it for nearly a month, between her hospital stay and the abduction. She wasn't surprised to see everything looked the same. Her bikes were still sitting in the PT room, covered by a sheet. She could hear the whir and hum of Logan's computers, and her nostrils picked up the scent that was uniquely her husband's, uniquely their home's. Max breathed deeply and smiled.   
  
"Welcome home," Logan said, smiling, his arm securely around her waist.   
  
Max grinned and turned her face to look up into his, "Nothing's changed."   
  
"Why would it?" Zack asked, coming in behind them. "You were only gone a month."   
  
"Gotta love your brothah, boo," Original Cindy chuckled, entering as well. "He's always bringing ya down to earth."   
  
"Even when I want to be in heaven," Max replied light heartedly, reaching out the playfully swat her brother. She caught his arm and he whirled around, surprised.   
  
"You want me to drop these groceries, Maxie?" he asked. On their way home, they had stopped off at the market, and both Zack and Original Cindy were carrying bags of groceries.   
  
"Just put 'em in the kitchen, big brother," Max ordered, not even bothering to hide her smile. She was ecstatic. She was home, in the arms of her husband, with her brother and her best friend. The child inside her was safe and healthy, albeit restless. The baby moved and Max groaned a little.   
  
"What's the matter?" Logan asked, concern thick in his voice. Zack and Original Cindy were looking at Max with similar expressions of concern and nervousness.   
  
"Maybe you should have gone to the doctors, boo," Cindy said gently.   
  
Max rolled her eyes, "Guy, I may have been held captive for two weeks, but I was held captive in part by a registered nurse. She took very good care of both of us. Deck would have had her head if anything happened to the baby. He wanted it safe as much as we do, only in a sick and twisted way." However, she could see Logan and the others were not convinced. "Guys!" she exclaimed. "I'm eight months pregnant; I'm not dying. Relax ok?" She decided that everyone was still going to be worried unless they had things to do. "Zack, you and Cindy go put the food away to give me some quality time with my husband. When you're done, Cindy can come back and help me get into the shower so I can have a real shower and not a sponge bath for once, and Zack can help Logan cook dinner." Max placed her hands on her hips, "Any arguments?"   
  
"Uh uh," Original Cindy replied, shaking her head. "Come on boo," she said, walking past Zack into the kitchen.   
  
Still worried but nevertheless smart enough not to tangle with his hormonally charged pregnant sister, Zack followed, calling over his shoulder, "If I didn't know better Maxie, I'd swear you were trying to take my job as CO."   
  
"Why would I want it?" Max retorted as Logan led her towards the couch. "It's reserved for hard-asses like yourself."   
  
Logan chuckled and settled her on the couch, placing a pillow behind her back. He, however, remained standing. "So do you want anything?" he asked nervously. "Another pillow? A blanket? A glass of water?" He began darting for the kitchen, "I should get you a glass of water. I should also call the hospital and have them send over the meds you need now that Abby isn't giving them to you anymore."   
  
"Logan," Max said, but he didn't hear her. He was too nervous and wound up. Max watched in semi amusement as he began darting for the kitchen.   
  
"Cindy!" Max called, laughing. "Stop my husband!" She watched as Cindy stepped out of the kitchen and walked up to Logan. Through her advanced hearing, Max shameless tuned into their quiet conversation.   
  
"Boo," Cindy said quietly to Logan. "She's fine. They're fine. They're home and they're safe. Don't start wiggin out now. Relax. Take some deep breaths and get your ass back over to that couch to sit with your wife."   
  
Logan nodded and said, "Thanks Cindy." He watched her go back into the kitchen before turning back to the couch. He saw Max smiling at him, bemused. "You think this is all very funny, don't you?"   
  
Max nodded and held out her hand, "C'mere."   
  
Logan walked towards the couch and took his wife's hand, sitting beside her on the couch. She took his hand to her lips and kissed his palm, then held it to her cheek and nuzzled it.   
  
"I'm really here Logan," she whispered. "You got us back. It's okay now."   
  
"I know," he murmured. "It's been so long. First the braxton hicks and the seizure, then Lydecker..." His voice broke. "I missed you so much."   
  
Max held her arms out to him and pulled him close to her body. She knew what he must have gone through, having to watch her seize, sit by her hospital bed day after day as she was in the coma, then to lose her once again to Lydecker so soon after getting her back. Ever since he'd thought her dead at Manticore, Logan had always had a fear of losing her. Max knew it. She knew he had always been afraid of losing her, period, but coming so close so many times had started to wear on his nerves. She couldn't imagine how she'd feel if she had thought he was dead. She remembered the fear and dread she had felt before she had first transfused him, there in the hospital, as he lay, slowly dying. She remembered the pain and the fear she had felt. Max was willing to bet her pain was nothing compared to what Logan had felt, thinking both she and their baby might die.   
  
Logan wrapped his arms around Max and felt her hold him. He held on tightly, mindful of the large bugle that was her stomach. He inhaled her scent and felt her warm skin against his own. Yet, he did not cry. He didn't want to. He knew that Max understood his fear and felt for what he had gone through during her illness and capture. He knew that he didn't need to cry. Max already knew. And she understood. And she was loving him and comforting him, holding him, running her fingers lightly over his back, playing with the hair at the base of his neck.   
  
"I can't believe you're back," he murmured, resting his forehead against hers and kissing the tip of her nose.   
  
She nipped at his lower lip and replied, "Believe it. We're both here and we're not going anywhere." Then she made a face, "Damn."   
  
"Your back again?" he asked, sitting up.   
  
She nodded, "This baby better appreciate everything I'm going through for her." Max sat up and twisted a little, hoping it would relieve the pain in her back. It didn't.   
  
"Here, let me," Logan offered, placing his hands on her shoulders and turning her so that he had better access to her lower back. His fingers and thumbs began kneading her flesh, pressing gently to ease the pain from the baby pressing on Max's sciatic nerve. He heard her sigh and knew the mini-massage was working. For several more minutes he worked, his fingers expertly easing the pain from her body. After a while, he brushed his lips over the scar the remained from her barcode removal and called, "Hey Cindy?"   
  
Original Cindy stepped out of the kitchen, "Wassup?"   
  
"Max's back is killing her. You wanna help her with the shower?" Logan asked, feeling Max lace her fingers with his.   
  
"Sure thing," Cindy said with a smile. She walked over the couch and held her hand out to Max, "Come on boo, let's get you all smellin' like roses again."   
  
Max took her friend's hand and felt Logan help push her up off the couch. "You saying I smell?" she asked her Cindy.   
  
Cindy chuckled and began helping Max towards the master bath, "Let's just say Original Cindy wouldn't want to stand downwind of you."   
  
Logan heard the women giggle and he grinned. Then he decided it was time to start dinner. Taking a deep breath and vowing that he was not going to start a fight with Zack if he could help it, Logan walked into the kitchen, finding his brother-in-law washing vegetables.   
  
Zack heard him come in, but did not turn from the sink. "By the amount of vegetables you had me and Cindy buy," he remarked. "I figured you were planning on a salad, so I started washing these things off."   
  
"Thanks," Logan said, not hiding the surprise in his voice as he pulled a cutting board from an underneath cabinet. He then set about pulling out pots, pans, and bowls, and setting them up at various points in the kitchen.   
  
"What else are you making?" Zack asked cordially.   
  
"Pasta Triclore," Logan answered, his head inside the refrigerator. "Max loves it, and it's not that hard to make."   
  
"Want some help?" Zack asked cautiously. He had vowed to make a better effort with Logan, for Max's sake if for no one else's.   
  
"Sure," his brother-in-law replied. This was the first time Zack had ever been over during the actual planning of dinner. Usually, the man merely showed up unannounced conveniently around the time Logan and Max were sitting down to eat. "Can you boil water?" Logan asked, trying not to sound condescending.   
  
Zack bit back a sharp retort and nodded, "Yeah, I think I can swing it." He set the last of the washed vegetables aside and brought a pan to the faucet to fill it. As he watched it fill with water, Zack mumbled, "Good job, out there. You really came through."   
  
Logan looked up. "Thanks," he said quickly. "You too."   
  
It was probably the closest Zack and Logan were ever going to come to a truce, but there, in the kitchen, the two men who loved Max more than anything in the world came to a silent understanding and agreement as they fixed up a mean Pasta Triclore.   
  
Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Max and Cindy were finishing up a conversation with Kendra. Original Cindy had suggested Max call her friend before getting in the shower. Kendra had made Walter sleep on the couch ever since she found out his bosses wouldn't let him switch from squatter search to the active search for Max.   
  
"Really, Kendra, we're okay," Max said for the seemingly thousandth time. She smiled, "Okay. I'll talk to you later. Tell Walter thanks for offering to help in the search. Okay. Bye Kendra."   
  
"Walter back in Kendra's good graces?" Original Cindy asked, folding a towel she had dropped on the floor.   
  
"Yeah," Max nodded. "She's gonna let Walter back into their bed tonight."   
  
"Uh oh," Cindy said. "That man's been without his nookie for nearly two weeks."   
  
Max couldn't repress her shudder of disgust at the thought of Kendra and Walter's sex life and said, "I'll call her in three days." She frowned, "I guess we can say that Kendra and Walter have gone into heat, huh?" She exchanged looks with Original Cindy.   
  
"Eeeeeew!" the two women chorused before breaking into a fit of giggles.   
  
Max suddenly felt the pain in her back intensify and she groaned.   
  
"Come on," Original Cindy said, handing Max her bathrobe. "Once you get that nice hot water on your back, you'll feel a lot better." She helped Max into the bathroom and sat her down on the closed toilet seat. "How are we gonna do this bitch?" she asked after getting the water running. "Your legs might not take standing in the shower."   
  
Max thought for a moment, "The chair Logan used to sit on to take a shower when he was paralyzed is in the back on the closet it if you want to get it."   
  
Original Cindy nodded and retreated into the bedroom just as the phone began to ring. A few moments later, Logan peeked his head through the door. "Your sisters are on the phone," he said, handing her the cordless. "They want to come over for dinner."   
  
Max sighed and stretched her back, "Not tonight." She put the phone to her ear. "Jace? Tinga? Brin? Hey! Hi Jondy. Would you guys mind if I asked you guys to come over some other night for dinner?" She listened. "It's just that my back is killing me and I'm probably gonna hit the sack right after we eat." She chuckled, "I'll have Zack bring you the leftovers. Aiight. Love you all too. Uh huh. Okay." She smiled at Logan and rolled her eyes, indicating that each of her sisters was taking her turn on the phone. "Okay. Bye. Uh huh, you too. Latah." Max grinned and hung up the phone, handing it back to Logan.   
  
"Comin' through," Cindy called as she brought the seat in and set it up underneath the running water.   
  
"Dinner's almost ready," Logan said, kissing Max's cheek before returning to the kitchen.   
  
Original Cindy helped Max onto the chair and closed the curtain to give her friend privacy. "I'm gonna stay right here in case you need anything," Cindy told her.   
  
"Thanks," Max replied, feeling the water flow over her skin. It felt so good. She shifted a little to allow the water to pound on her back and sighed. "Cindy?" she said.   
  
"Yeah boo?" Original Cindy replied, flipping through a Canadian import magazine she had found in Max and Logan's room.   
  
"Thanks for staying with Logan while I was gone," Max said as she began working a large amount of shampoo into her dark mane.   
  
"Not a problem, homegirl," her friend answered.   
  
"He wasn't too stubborn was he?" Max asked, trying not to laugh. She knew he probably had been stubborn as hell.   
  
"Your man? Stubborn?" Cindy asked with a laugh. "Nah. Not at all." The girls shared a laugh.   
  
Max began rinsing the shampoo from her hair and closed her eyes. She was thankful she had such great friends. She even had a great, and fairly normal, given the circumstances, family. She knew they would always be there for her, and Logan. And their baby. She hadn't shared her concerns over her own health with anyone yet. She thought of whom she could talk to. She knew she needed to talk to Logan about it. She needed to tell him not to shut down if anything happened to her. Their baby would need her father. Max needed to tell Original Cindy and Bling not to let Logan shut down. She wanted to ask her sibs to pick up the Eyes Only slack if she was unable to. Brin, Tinga, and Zane had been doing the Eyes Only fieldwork since Max had discovered she was pregnant. She wondered if they would be willing to take over full time if anything happened to her. She assumed they would. Zane had begun leasing an apartment over near where Max and Cindy had once lived, and walked his dog in the same park Max and Logan   
frequently took evening strolls.   
  
She took a deep breath and poured some conditioner onto her hair. Max knew her family would pick up the pieces and go on if anything happened to her. The only one she wasn't sure about was Logan. After he'd thought her dead at Manticore, he had shut down. He'd neglected the Eyes Only network and begun drinking excessively. She needed to know he wouldn't do the same thing once their child was born, should anything happen to Max.   
  
Max let the water beat on her back for a full ten minutes before finally shutting off the water. Cindy handed her a towel for her hair and another for her body. Max wrapped her hair up turban style and dried off her body, still sitting on the shower seat. Then she slipped into her robe and allowed Cindy to help her back into the bedroom, where she had set aside one of Logan's T-shirts and a pair of sweats for Max to wear and be comfortable in. Max sat on the edge of the bed and slipped the T-shirt on. She stood up, slowly, to put the T-shirt on, when she felt a gush of fluid against her legs. Then, the pain that had been in her back all evening suddenly ripped through her stomach, although admittedly not as intensely as the false labor had a month ago.   
  
Max gasped and sat back down on the bed.   
  
"What?" Original Cindy asked. "Boo? What's wrong?"   
  
In her head, Max did some quick multiplication as the contraction passed. She was eight months pregnant, at almost thirty-three weeks. She remembered her doctor telling her that after thirty-two weeks, the fetus was over eighty percent viable. Abby had told her the baby had dropped into position, meaning it was head down, which was also good. Max turned to face Original Cindy and said, "There's an overnight bag in the closet. Get that and my sneakers and meet me in the kitchen."   
  
Original Cindy's eyes widened, "It's time, isn't it? Little Boo's on her way?"   
  
Max nodded as she heard Logan call, "Dinner!"   
  
"Perfect timing," she said, smiling at her friend. "Don't panic. It's going to be fine." Despite the fear within her, and the anticipation of another dizzying wave of pain to hit her at any minute, Max was incredibly calm, surreal. She slowly made her way towards the kitchen. Max found Zack already sitting at the table. Logan smiled at her as he brought in a steaming bowl of pasta.   
  
"Where's Cindy?" he asked.   
  
"Getting my bag," Max replied, unable to hide the smile on her face. Logan's head snapped up, confusion in his eyes. "Logan, my water just broke," she told him.   
  
Zack jumped up, "You're water...? You mean you're in labor?"   
  
Max nodded. "I had a contraction and there should be another one coming any minute now." She looked at her brother and her husband, both of who were slightly pale and in varying states of shock. Max calmly walked over to Logan and took the keys from his pocket, tossing them to Zack. "Go downstairs, bring the car around. We'll me you there."   
  
Zack caught the keys and nodded, bolting out of the apartment.   
  
Max then took Logan's cell phone from his pocket and dialed her doctor. "Yes, hello?" she said when the doctor answered her page. "Honey maybe you should sit down," she murmured to her husband, who was standing there, staring at her, still shocked. "Doctor? Hi. I've been having back pain for about three hours now. I thought it was the sciatic nerve thing again, so I took a hot shower. But," she paused. "I think my water just broke and I had a contraction." Max checked Logan's watch. "About seven minutes ago. No, I haven't had another one. Yes I have a bag packed." She took Logan's hand and saw Cindy coming out of the bedroom. "Honey, let's go," Max whispered. "Cindy, take him, he's in shock."   
  
Original Cindy chuckled and smacked Logan upside the head, "Moneybags, wake up!"   
  
The blow to Logan's skull brought him out of his stupor. "Ow!" he cried.   
  
"Ow!" Max cried, still on the phone with her doctor, as another contraction overtook her. Logan jumped forward and grabbed her arms, giving her something to support herself on until the contraction passed. She took deep breaths and squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for it to be over. Once it had subsided, she listened to the doctor, "Yes I just had another one." She took Logan's watch. "I'd say about nine minutes. Okay, we're on our way. See you there." Max hung up Logan's phone and handed it back to him.   
  
She looked at her husband and her best friend and said, "Well guys, I guess it's time to have a baby."   
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I know you guys hate me, but I want the birth chapter to be a separate chapter on it's own. Next time, I promise. Please read and review!   
  
  
  



	11. This Woman's Work

Author's Notes: I know, I know, I know...this took FOREVER and I profusely apologize. Three words: Writer's Block Sucks. Argh. Anywho, I think it's over now, at least, enough for me to write the birth chapter for you all. This is not the end of the series by any means. There's at least three more chapters stuck in my head somewhere. I hope that I'll be able to get them out faster than I did this one.  
  
Author's Note 2: I was really hoping to write a Summer Series, a possible Season Two, but this damned writer's block held me up so much. I should have had the first four or five chapters done by now. So, to any of you who have been looking for it, I don't know if, by this point, since I'm moving to college in a month and a half, if I'm going to be able to do it. I'm sorry.  
  
Author's Note 3: Thanks, as always, to my super patient and incredibly amazing beta boos, Lady Callie and Evil Twin. You girls are the best!  
  
Disclaimer: None of it's mine (except the story line), all of it's Chic's and Cameron's, please don't sure, blah blah blah. This is an AU fic set anytime after "Female Trouble." I'm willing to allow "Shorties in Love" because it was Manticore-free. Logan kept the use of his legs, the whole Tinga-Charlie-Case thing never happened, Renfro doesn't exist and never did, and Manticore went down MY way (see chapter two).  
  
Aiight, enough of my blabbering... enjoy!  
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By the time Max, Logan, Original Cindy, and Zack made it to the hospital, Logan had fully recovered from his shock and was, like Max, surprisingly calm. It took fifteen minutes to get to the hospital, even the way Zack drove, and Max had another contraction en route. In the back seat of the car with her husband, she leaned against his chest and gripped the back of the car seat, breathing slowly and methodically, focusing on something other than the pain until it passed. Although she and Logan had never taken a formal Lamaze class, because of Lydecker's interference, they remembered what Bling had told them when Max had gone into false labor. In addition, Jace had given Logan a few helpful hints she and Victor-who had been mysteriously transferred out of Manticore during her sixth month-had used during the birth of Maxito.  
  
Zack pulled up to the hospital entrance and Cindy flagged down an orderly, who brought a wheelchair over to the side of the car. Zack and Logan helped Max into it, and then Zack and Cindy followed Max and Logan inside. After registering Max under the name Hannah Raymond, a precautionary measure taken at Zack's advice just in case Lydecker had any overzealous minions who might be looking for her, Max and Logan were accompanied by a nurse up to the maternity ward, while Zack and Cindy hunted down pay phones.   
  
"Who should we call?" Original Cindy asked.  
  
Zack thought for a moment, "Her sisters will kill me if I don't call them and let them know what's going on. If they want to let the guys know, that's fine."  
  
She nodded, "Original Cindy remembers reading a little something about it being good for a mama-to-be to be surrounded by the women in her life during the early parts of her labor. It's like a support thing, I guess."  
  
Zack shrugged, "Couldn't hurt." He was about to dial when he was shocked to find himself thinking of Logan, "Think it applies for the fathers-to-be too?"  
  
Original Cindy chuckled, wondering if Zack and Logan might finally start to get along after Lil Boo was born. "Tell ya what, junior. You call all your peeps and I'll call all ours, and we'll get the whole crew here to support Boo and Moneybags, aiight?"  
  
Zack grinned in spite of himself, "Aiight."  
  
And quickly, the phone chain commenced. Tinga, Brin, Jondy and Syl were having dinner together at Brin's place so it only took one call to inform them, while Jace had gone home to check on Maxito. Zane, Johnny, and Krit were playing poker at Zane's crib, and told Zack they'd swing by and pick up the girls before coming over. All the Manticore kids hated hospitals with an undying passion, because of what had been done to them as children. But they were willing to put their uneasiness aside to come and support their baby sister and her husband.  
  
Kendra was delighted to find that Max was in labor. However, after discovering from Original Cindy that a woman's labor could last twenty-four hours or longer, said she'd swing by the hospital eventually. Original Cindy had chuckled and told her not to commit any crimes against nature with her man, and then hung up. A quick call to Crash tracked down Sketchy and Herbal, who extended their congratulations. However, since Normal was an ass and it was two in the morning, they decided not to come to the hospital in anticipation of a full workday that was coming in the morning, especially since they were to tell Normal that there was no way in hell Original Cindy was gonna come to work. She was gonna be there for her boo.  
  
Original Cindy was eventually able to track down Bling as well. She figured that other than Max, he was Logan's best friend, and Moneybags was probably going to need the tall black brothah to kick his skinny white ass back into line.  
  
"Is Logan freaking out?" Bling asked.  
  
"He started to at the apartment," Cindy told him. "But no worries. Original Cindy showed her Boo's boo the error of his ways."  
  
Bling chuckled, "I'll be there ASAP."  
  
Original Cindy hung up the phone and turned to Zack, who had just finished his own round of calls. Zack leaned against the payphone, a worried expression on his face.  
  
"Waz the matter, boo?' Original Cindy asked.  
  
Zack shook his head, "I just have this feeling that something's not right."  
  
"Lydecker?"  
  
The CO shrugged, "I don't think so. He was definitely dead. And his niece is in jail, so I don't think that's it."  
  
"Give Logan's friend, they guy with the computer voice, a call. He's more connected than Logan. Maybe he can find out if General Patton had any other peeps working for him," Cindy suggested. "You and your sibs are supercharged fighting machines. You tellin' me you guys can't just be a little on guard?"  
  
Zack sighed, "It's just some feeling I have Cindy. Like something bad is going to happen. I just wish I knew what."  
  
Original Cindy put her hand on his shoulder and said, "My boo's lucky to have you all in her life. All any of you want to do is protect her. You don't think between ya'll, Bling, Moneybags, and Original Cindy, Max won't be protected?"  
  
Zack looked a Cindy and broke out into a lopsided smile, "I'll call Sebastian later. Let's go and see how my baby sister and her overprotective husband are doing."  
  
Cindy chuckled, "Right on, baby."  
  
Up in the maternity ward, nurses had helped Max change into a hospital gown, and gotten her hooked up to a fetal heart monitor, a device to measure her contractions, and an IV of nutrients and her neuro-supplements. They had her resting in an oversized adjustable bed. Logan's money and connections, with the help of Sebastian and Max's doctor, had assured Max a birthing suite. It was comfortable, and homey, yet full of the medical equipment necessary. It was somewhere between a hospital room and a hotel room. They had thought it would make Max more comfortable and at ease.  
  
However, the only think Max wanted right now to make her comfortable and at ease was an epidural. "When do I get the drugs?" she asked after another contraction passed. They were between nine and eleven minutes apart, and she was already tired of the constant pain that radiated through her body. She had been right all those months ago; Manticore had definitely *not* engineered it's females to withstand this kind of pain. If she had time to think about it, Max would have found it humbling and oddly comforting that she didn't have a labor tolerance, because it made her more like normal, completely human women. However, all Max was thinking about were painkillers.  
  
Her nurse smiled and said, "Soon, I promise. Your doctor has been called, and after she checks you out, I'm sure she'll order an anesthesiologist for you."  
  
Max pouted, "But I want the drugs now."  
  
Logan squeezed her hand and kissed her forehead, "You're doing great Max. I'm so proud of you."  
  
Max glared at Logan, "Logan, darling, I love you with every fiber of my being but at this moment I'm not entirely pleased with you for putting me in this situation. So, for as proud as you are of me and as happy as knowing that makes me, I would advise you not to do too much talking until I am highly medicated and can't feel anything from the waist down."  
  
Logan exchanged glances with the nurse and nodded to Max, indicating that he agreed to her terms.  
  
"Is this your first?" the nurse asked.  
  
Logan went to open his mouth, then remembered his agreement and looked at Max.  
  
"Yes," his wife answered.  
  
"The first is always the hardest," the nurse said as she took Max's vitals.  
  
"How many do you have?" Max asked.  
  
"Four," the nurse answered. "And I just found out that in six months I'll have five." She patted her stomach briefly before taking her stethoscope and listening to Max's heart.  
  
Just then, another strong contraction hit Max and her entire body tensed as she began to breathe through the pain. Logan dabbed her forehead with a cool cloth and got some ice chips ready for her. He stroked the back of her hand and lightly rubbed her shoulders and she breathed through the contraction. When it had passed, the nurse checked her watch.  
  
"Okay, we're definitely at nine minutes apart." She smiled, "I'll go check and see where your doctor is." She stopped at the door and turned. "You know," she said kindly. "Take it from an old pro. If you just let your body relax during the contractions, instead of trying to fight them or be strong through them, they're less painful. It helps is you have a focus object too."  
  
"Thanks," Logan said quickly and smiled at the nurse. He gave Max the cup of ice chips and tentatively asked, "What do you want to use for a focus object?"   
  
Max sucked on the ice and shrugged, "I dunno. That picture on the wall maybe?"  
  
"I guess," Logan said. "Or we could use this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his mother's locket.  
  
Max gasped, "I always wondered what you did with that thing."  
  
"My mother told me to give this to my wife when she had our first child," Logan told her, dangling the necklace for his wife to see. "I'm thinking this is kinda what she meant."  
  
"It's perfect," Max said, tears filling her eyes. She watched as Logan got up and hung it in place of the picture across from her bed.   
  
  
"How's the mama-to-be?" Bling booming voice filled the room.  
  
"Bling!" Max cried.  
  
"Hey Max," Bling said. "Hey man," he hugged Logan. "How you holding up?"  
  
"He's fine, I'm a mess," Max replied, taking another ice chip.  
  
"You look beautiful," Bling said.  
  
"See?" Logan chided, laughing as he ducked the box of tissues Max threw at his head.  
  
The doctor walked in and Bling said to Logan, "Why don't you and I go down to the vending machines and get something to drink. Give Max and the doctor some one on one time."  
  
Logan looked at Max, "That okay with you?"  
  
Max shrugged, "Yeah I guess. Don't come back, actually, for your own safety, until after I get the epidural."  
  
The doctor, Bling, and Logan chuckled.  
  
  
In the hall, Logan noticed a crowd of people in the waiting room. Curious, he walked down the hall, with Bling close behind, to investigate. To his surprise, he found the entire assembled group of X-5 rogues milling around the waiting area. "I didn't know this is where you'd plan the next class of '09 reunion," Logan said good-naturedly. Max's siblings jumped to their feet. He hugged her sisters and shook hands with her brothers, thanking them for coming.  
  
"How's she doing?" Jondy asked.  
  
"She's an X-5 female in excruciating pain, bedridden, attached to monitors, waiting for a specialist to come to give her painkillers," Logan replied. "How do you think she is?"  
  
"Evil bitch monster of death?" Krit suggested, causing the assembled to laugh.  
  
Original Cindy stepped forward, "I figured Boo could some sistahs power, so Zack and I called in the troops."  
  
Logan gave her a quick hug, "Thanks." He looked up at Zack, "Thanks, man."  
  
"No sweat," Zack replied.  
  
"So when can we see her?" Syl asked.  
  
"Wait until she gets the epidural," Logan suggested. "She'll be much more personable." Unconsciously, he wiggled his fingers and shook out his hand, willing feeling back into it. During several contractions, Max had squeezed it so hard he was sure it would break. Wisely, though, he kept his pain to himself.  
  
Bling took vending machine orders, and then recruited two X-5s to help him carry the bundle of junk food and carbonated beverages. When he returned with Tinga and Zane ten minutes later, he murmured to Logan, "The anesthesiologist was just going into Max's room as we went by."  
  
Logan glanced anxiously at the door or his wife's room. "Thanks man," he said, cracking the top of his soda can open. He munched thoughtfully on the potato chips Bling had brought him and waited with some appearance of patience until the doctor arrived to give him new information. He fought to keep a reign on his anxiousness when the doctor approached. Even though he wanted to jump to his feet, Logan calmly rose to his feet.  
"How's she doing?"  
  
The doctor was about to respond when she noticed that nearly everyone else in the waiting room was paying attention to their conversation. Among them, she noted a bald black man and a black woman wearing a shirt that said "I luv girls" on it. A young man who could have been her patient's twin was sitting with two blonde men and a blonde woman, a woman of Asian descent, a red head, and two women and a man of indiscernible ethnic background. The doctor glanced at Logan and said quietly, "Maybe we should speak somewhere more private."  
  
A look of worry crossed Logan's face. Then he noticed the doctor eyeing Max's siblings and he chuckled. "It's all right," he told her. "This is my wife's family. Those are her brother's and sisters." He pointed to Krit, Zack, Johnny, Syl, Brin, Jondy, Jace, Tinga, and Zane. "That is my wife's best friend Cindy, and the other one is my friend Bling." The assembled nodded varying degrees of acknowledgement and greeting.  
  
"Large family," the doctor remarked.  
  
"You have no idea," Logan replied, looking over his shoulder at his in-laws.  
  
"So, doc, what's the dealio with my boo?" Original Cindy asked, jumping to her feet.  
  
"How's our sister?" Krit asked.  
  
The doctor smiled, "She's resting comfortably. Her contractions are eight minutes apart, and she's 40% dilated and 35% effaced. Her labor could last anywhere from another twelve to twenty-four hours, depending on how she progresses. The baby's heartbeat is strong and steady. Everything's going normally." She could practically feel the collective sigh of release.  
  
"Can we see her?" Jondy asked.  
  
"She needs her rest," the doctor said. "But I don't see how some visitors could harm her. Not all of you at once though," she warned.  
  
Tinga stepped up to Logan, "Take a few minutes with her, and then we'll be in." She took his can of soda from his hands and nudged him towards Max's room.  
  
He knocked lightly and Max turned to face him. Her eyes struggled to focus a little, but when they did, she smiled. "Hey," she said, her voice light and airy.  
  
"Hey yourself," he replied, sitting on a stool beside her bed. He smoothed her hair and kissed her damp forehead, "How are you feeling, beautiful?"  
  
Max chuckled, "I can't feel anything from the chest down. It's great."  
  
"What'd they do?" Logan asked.  
  
Max fought the drug-induced haze and tried to speak with some semblance of coherence, "It's not just a quick injection to the back. It hurt like a bitch though. A needle with a tube attached to it was stuck between two of my vertebrae. I guess the tube, which feeds the anesthetic into the spinal column, was taped to the back." A drugged haze overtook Max again, "And then it was like, whooooooosh, no more pain." She tried snapping her fingers to emphasize her point, but she could not get her body to respond.   
  
Logan chuckled to see his wife looped and he kissed the back of her hand, "You did great. The doctor said you're coming along normally and everything's fine."  
  
"Good," Max said with a smile.  
  
"You sisters are here to see you," Logan told her. "Original Cindy and Zack called them. Do you want to see them?"  
  
"Yesh," Max replied. She frowned, "Yesh. Yeeeeeeesh." She looked at Logan, "I want to say yesh but I keep saying yesh."  
  
He grinned, "You're a little hazy from the drug, I think. Do you want some water first?"  
  
"No water," Max said, looking at him a bit devilishly. She reached up and pulled his face closer to hers, "This." Max craned her neck up and kissed him, hard. Surprised, but nevertheless pleased, Logan smiled and kissed back.  
  
"Hey hey hey, enough of that you two," a voice said from the doorway. "That's what got you here in the first place."  
  
Max and Logan broke apart and Max said, "Hey Syl."  
  
"Hey baby sister," Syl replied. "Feel up to some visitors?"  
  
"Sure," Max said as she watched Syl flag their sisters into the room.   
  
Logan kissed Max lightly, "I'll give you time with them. I'll be in the waiting room if you need me."  
  
"Okay," Max replied, and watched him leave the room. She looked at her sisters. Jondy had taken a seat on the foot of the bed, while Tinga sat beside Max. Syl was on the stool Logan had been sitting in, while Brin took a chair in the corner of the room. Jace stood in the doorway.  
  
"How are you, baby sister?" Tinga asked, smoothing Max's hair.  
  
"Tired," Max replied, smiling as Tinga swooped down and kissed her forehead. "Are you okay?" Max asked her.  
  
Tinga looked around at her sisters, wondering if they were all wondering the same thing. Tinga smiled, blinking back tears, "Yeah Maxie girl, I'm all good. Your baby's going to be beautiful."  
  
Jace smiled, "Maxito can't wait to meet his cousin. He's at home with Victor. When I left, they were betting whether it was going to be a boy or a girl."  
  
"What do you think it's gonna be?" Jondy asked.  
  
"Logan and I think it's gonna be a girl," Max replied.  
  
"Not a boy?" Syl asked.  
  
"What are you going to name it?" Brin asked, flinging one leg over the arm of her chair.  
  
Max smiled, "Logan and I talked about it a little before all that crap with my seizures and Lydecker went down. If it's a girl, her name's going to be Jacqueline Eva Gabrielle Cale. If it's a boy, his name is going to be Evan Jackson Logan Cale."  
  
Her sisters' eyes filled with tears. "You're naming them for Eva and Jack, either way," Jondy said.  
  
Max nodded, "Gabrielle was Logan's mother's name." She smiled to herself and reached for the remote to prop the bed up higher. A serious tone settled on her face, 'I'm glad you're all here."  
  
"We wouldn't be anywhere else," Jace said.  
  
"I'm glad," Max began. "Not only because my girls are all here to support me, but also because... I need to talk to you."  
  
"About?" Brin asked, sitting up straight.  
  
Max sighed, "About Logan." She looked at each of her sisters. "I need you guys to promise me that if anything happens to me, you'll make sure he doesn't self destruct and you'll help him take care of the baby."  
  
"Maxie," Tinga began.  
  
"No!" Max said firmly. "Promise me." She looked straight into her sisters' eyes, begging and pleading with them not to fight her on this. "You guys know everything I've been through. This baby is strong, but my body isn't. If anything happens, it's more likely I'll be the one who won't survive."  
  
"Have you talked to Logan about this?" Syl asked softly.  
  
"Not yet," Max answered. "I need you all to promise me first." She went from sister to sister.  
  
"Jondy?"  
  
"I promise."  
  
"Brin?"  
  
"I promise."  
  
"Jace?"  
  
"I promise."  
  
"Syl?"  
  
"I promise Maxie."  
  
"Tinga?"  
  
Nothing. Tinga's eyes were squeezed tightly shut but Max could see the tears shining in the corners. She knew that this promise she was asking her oldest sister to make was especially hard for her because of the loss of her own child. Tinga alone knew the danger of childbirth better then Jace or Max.   
  
"Tinga?"  
  
"I promise." A hoarse whisper voiced Tinga's fear for her sister and her child.   
  
Max smiled, "Thank you." She squeezed Tinga's hand. "Aiight ya'll, get out so I can get this bitch over with my husband." Her sister's took turns kissing her on the cheek and left. Logan came in a few minutes later. Max beckoned him to sit beside her on the bed. He dabbed her forehead with a cool cloth and chuckled.  
  
"What?" Max asked.  
  
"According to that monitor, you just had a severe contraction," he said, pointing to the read out. "If you hadn't been drugged, my hand would be crushed."  
  
She swatted him playfully, "I wasn't squeezing that hard."  
  
"I beg to differ." Logan held up his hand, "Look, I'm bruised."  
  
Max brought his hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly. "There," she said, gazing into his eyes. "All better." She took a deep breath. She needed to tell him this while she had his attention and while she was still conscious. "Logan," she said carefully. "I need to talk to you."  
  
He stroked the inside of her forearm, "About what, love?"  
  
"I need you to promise me something," she began.  
  
Logan saw the look of utter seriousness on her face and said cautiously, "Max-"  
  
"Logan," she said firmly. "We need to talk about this. You know as well as I do that I might not survive the birth." Logan averted his gaze and she gripped his hand. "Logan, look at me." His blue eyes, full of tears, could not help but refocus on her. "Everything I've been through these past nine months has made my body weak. The supplements have kept my seizures under control and everything has been done to ensure that this baby will be born healthy and perfect. But it's taxed my body almost beyond my genetically enhanced limits. It'll be a miracle if I come through this birth unscathed."  
  
Logan's tears fell down his cheeks. "Max, please," he begged. "Don't do this, not now."  
  
She brushed his tears from his cheeks gently with her soft thumbs, "Logan, I'm being realistic. I'm going to be weak for longer than normal after this. I can feel it. If I-" Her voice caught. "If I die, I need you to promise me you won't self destruct. Promise me you'll take care of this baby."  
  
"Max," Logan whispered fiercely. "This baby is going to have a mother. You. You're her mother. Stop talking like you're going away."  
  
"I might," Max insisted. "And if I do, promise me you'll take care of her and protect her." Now she was crying too.  
  
"You know I will Max," Logan vowed. "But we're going to take care of her and protect her together. You and me, Max. We're a team. We're family. We've been through so much. This baby is a blessing. I can't believe that such a blessing would kill you." He was weeping now, full force.  
  
Max tugged on his arm and he laid down beside her, taking her in his arms. He ran his fingers through her hair and brushed the tips of his fingers over her barcode scar. Dipping down, he kissed it lightly and whispered in her ear, "Sleep, beloved. You need your strength."  
  
Max yawned, "Okay." She closed her eyes, "Stay with me, please?"  
  
"I'm right here," he replied, holding her tightly.  
  
"You won't leave?" A sense of déjà vu washed over her.  
  
Logan felt it too. He smoothed the hair on her forehead and whispered, "I'm not going anywhere." He rested his head on hers. "I promise." He shut his eyes and let the rhythm of her breathing lull him to sleep. He hadn't slept soundly in days, save for the time he had shared a dream with Max.  
  
Max awoke two hours later, still feeling blissfully numb from the waist down. The drugs effects were still in full swing and she happily settled back down to sleep in the arms of her husband, knowing that moments like this were soon going to be few and far between. Three hours later she awoke once more. She looked up to see Original Cindy sitting in the chair opposite the bed, reading a magazine. Logan was still asleep. "Hey boo," Max whispered, as not to wake him.  
  
Cindy smiled, "Hey." She kept her voice hushed. "How you feeling?"  
  
"Like I'm about to make something the size of a watermelon come out something the size of a lemon," Max replied. Although she could not feel pain, she was finding she could still feel the weight of the baby pressing inside her.  
  
Original Cindy smiled, "You're gonna be fine."  
  
At that moment, Logan began to stir. Max turned and kissed his jaw. "Hey," she murmured.  
  
"Hey yourself," he replied. Then, he became aware of Cindy's presence. "Hey," he said.  
  
"Hey," she replied.  
  
"Hey," Logan said again, feeling uncomfortable for some reason.  
  
"We did that already," Cindy chuckled.  
  
Logan couldn't help but smile at the shared joke.  
  
Just then, the doctor entered. "Mind if I take a look?" she asked.  
  
"Go for it," Max said.  
  
"I'm gonna go take a walk," Logan told her. He glanced at Cindy.  
  
"I'll go too," she replied, seeing the look on Logan's face. She followed him out the door and watched as he walked a few doors down the hall, then rested dejectedly against the wall. "Wassup boo?" she asked. "Why the long face?"  
  
Logan looked sadly at Original Cindy, "Before we fell asleep Max..." He took a deep breath. "She made me promise to look after the baby if she died."  
  
"If Max died?" Cindy asked.  
  
Logan nodded.  
  
"Smart girl," Original Cindy said matter of factly.  
  
Logan's eyes widened. "Cindy!" he exclaimed. "Max was talking about *dying*."  
  
"I know," she replied. "She's not running from the reality of the situation." Original Cindy could see that Logan was still mortified and grief stricken. "Look," she said, taking his hand and leading him to a group of chairs. "Original Cindy's going to break it down for you. Max is one strong, smart woman. But she knows her body. She's been through hell, a hell that would've killed most women months ago. As it is, it's a miracle she carried Lil Boo to term. She's got true motherly instincts, Logan. She's willing to die for that child, and she knows she *might* die for that child. It sucks major, but it's a possibility. And nothing is going to come from ignoring the fact that her body might give out."  
  
"I can't lose her Cindy," Logan said. "I've already lost her twice. And I just got her back. I can't lose her again. I don't know anything about kids. How am I going to be able to raise a child without her?"  
  
Original Cindy took his hand, "You're going to do what you have to do. And at this moment, what you have to do is be there for Max. If she doesn't have any strength left then be her strength. If she needs to yell at you for knocking her up, then let her. If she needs you to hold her, then hold her and don't let go. But *don't* get all boo-hooey and *don't* break your promise to your wife."  
  
"Mr. Cale!" A nurse came running down the hall.  
  
"What?" Logan jumped up. "What's wrong with my wife?" The alarm was thick in his voice.  
  
The nurse smiled, "Nothing's wrong. The doctor just wanted me to tell you that your wife has progressed rapidly. She's now 95% dilated and 100% effaced. It won't be long now. Her contractions are down to five minutes apart."  
  
Logan's eyes widened and he felt Cindy shove him back in the direction of the room. He stepped inside and found Max sitting up in bed. By now, she had been in labor for ten hours. Logan wondered how much longer the epidural would last. "Hey gorgeous," he chimed.  
  
Max sighed, "I feel fat and ugly. I can't wait for this baby to be out of me."  
  
"Soon, love," he said, sitting beside her. "You ok?"  
  
"I'm tired," she confessed. "The doctor said it won't be long now."  
  
He kissed her hand.  
  
"Logan, I'm scared," Max said honestly. He pulled her close to him and rocked her soothingly.  
  
"It's going to be alright, Max, I promise," Logan said quietly, wishing more than anything that he was right.  
  
"What if I can't do it?" she asked worriedly. "What if I don't have the strength?"  
  
"Max," he said. "I've seen you take down South African supercharged psycho supersoldiers. You survived Manticore twice. What makes you think you can't handle this? You're the strongest woman I know." He kissed her on the cheek.  
  
Zack knocked on the door, "Am I interrupting?"  
  
Logan shook his head, "No." He caressed Max's cheek and stood. "I'm gonna hit the vending machine again. You two take some time and chat." He felt Max squeeze his hand before she released and allowed him to walk out of the room. As he walked by Zack, Logan felt his brother-in-law pat him on the shoulder in a friendly gesture. Logan's brows rose in surprise, but he kept walking.  
  
Max too raised a brow.  
  
"What?" Zack asked innocently, sitting on the stool.  
  
"That was different," she remarked. "Since when do you like my husband?"  
  
"Logan?" Zack still feigned innocence. "I've always like Logan."  
  
Max laughed, "That is such bullshit and you know it. First you hated him, saw him as a tactical disadvantage and a hindrance. Then, you tolerated him for my sake. What'd you two do, bond over my abduction?"  
  
Zack seemed to consider this, "I guess. I dunno Maxie. I guess the more we worked together, the more I realized I couldn't hate him just because he was married to you." It was a blanket statement, one that did not directly reference Zack's long term wish that he was the one Max was in love with. He half suspected she knew. But she saw him as a big brother. She *did* love him, but as a sibling, and nothing else.  
  
  
  
  
TBC....it was a loooong chapter, so I split it up. ;-)  
  



	12. My Light, My Strength

Author's Notes, Disclaimers, etc: See previous chapter  
_________________________________________________________________  
  
Logan sat in the hallway, giving Zack and Max time to talk before the delivery. He figured he'd give them about fifteen minutes before he went back in. The way she was progressing, Logan anticipated Max to begin delivering within the hour. Within the hour. Wow. Logan was overwhelmed by the notion that possibly in less than an hour, he would be a father. Not just a father-to-be, like he had been for the last nine months, but a real father. He would be responsible for another human being's life. It would be his job to nurture, feed, clothe, teach, and protect that child. The thought was astounding. Logan let out a long-winded sigh.  
  
Max's siblings were in various parts of the waiting room. The guys had taken up another game of poker, allowing Bling and Original Cindy to join in. Jace was at a pay phone, undoubtedly calling home to check on Victor and little Max. Syl was dozing in a chair beside Brin, who was reading a magazine. Jondy and Tinga were discussing something in hushed voices. Logan wondered if they were discussing the promise they had made to Max.   
  
The thought of his own promise weighed on Logan's heart and soul and he pushed it aside. He had to keep his promise. End of inner monologue. He was about to be a father. If destiny, which had been both so kind and so cruel to him in the past, wanted him to be a single father, then he was going to be the best single father any child had ever known. But in Logan's heart of hearts, he knew that their child was going to have both parents for a long time to come.  
  
Just then, a cry came from Max's room. Logan leapt to his feet and raced down the hall, nearly colliding with nurses and doctors who were doing the same thing. "What happened?" he asked Zack, who was standing in the corner, looking shocked and worried.  
  
Max let out another yell and tears spilled down her face. "Logan," she cried, reaching her hand toward him. He took it and got as close to her as he could.  
  
"What's going on?" he asked, trying not to sound worried.  
  
The doctor looked up from her position at Max's feet and said, "Nothing, Dad. It seems as though your wife's epidural has worn off just in time for her to begin delivery. She's 100% dilated and effaced."  
  
"She progressed so quickly," a nurse commented, slipping into a paper gown that went over her scrubs before handing Logan a gown of his own.  
  
"It must be the genetics," Zack muttered to no one in particular before he was ushered out of a room by another nurse who said, "Sorry, parents and medical personal only!"  
  
"Ready to begin pushing?" the doctor asked Max as two nurses settled Max's feet into the stirrups.  
  
"Do I really have a choice?" Max grunted, once again trying to breathe through the pain of her contractions, which seemed to be coming one after the other.  
  
Just then, a nurse said, "Doctor, the bed is malfunctioning and won't raise up."  
  
"Damn," the doctor said, pulling on some rubber gloves.  
  
"What?" Logan asked, holding Max's hand.  
  
"We usually like the bed to be raised, in stead of flat, like they used to do years ago. If the mother is sitting up, gravity helps things along and the birth is a little less effortful," the doctor explained. Then she paused, "Tell you what, Dad. We don't usually do this unless the family has requested it, but would you mind getting in behind your wife? Let her lean against your chest and support her back and shoulders."  
  
Logan looked at Max, as though to ask if she wanted him behind her.  
  
"Do it quick," Max said through gritted teeth. "I wanna push NOW!"  
  
Logan suppressed a chuckle, fearing for his life, and slid in behind Max as quickly and as gently as he could. He helped her sit up and rest against his chest. He held on to both her hands and didn't care how tightly she squeezed.  
  
"All right Mom," the doctor said from behind her surgical mask. "On the next contraction, I want you to put your chin to your chest, take a deep breath and hold it while you push, ok? Dad, I want you to count to ten."  
  
"Here it comes," a nurse warned.  
  
"Push!" the doctor cried.  
  
Max took a deep breath and began to push. The pain coursed through her body and the exertion of such an action was instantaneously felt. She squeezed her eyes shut and yelled, "Yeeeaaaaaaarrgh!"  
  
Meanwhile, Logan counted to ten, "Seven, eight, nine, ten."  
  
"Good!" the doctor cried.  
  
Max sighed heavily and leaned against Logan's chest. She felt him kiss the top of her head and whisper that he loved her. It was enough strength to help her through the next contraction.  
  
"Push!" the doctor instructed again. Once again, Logan counted to ten while Max held her breath and screamed in pain. For half an hour, she alternated periods of pushing and brief periods of rest. Her brow was drenched in sweat and her entire body ached and complained with exhaustion.  
  
"Again," the doctor said.  
  
"I'm so tired," Max cried, as tears and sweat streamed down her face. She felt a nurse dab her forehead with a damp cloth. "Logan, I can't do this anymore." Max wept in pain and fatigue as another contraction ripped through her body.  
  
"Yes you can Max," Logan encouraged, kissing her sweat-drenched brow. He supported her shoulders and whispered in her ear, "The baby's almost here, sweetheart. Just a little more. Then you can rest."  
  
"I can't, I can't," Max insisted, somewhat hysterically as the contractions came in waves.  
  
"You can," Logan said firmly. "You're so strong Max. You're so brave. You've survived worse than this before." He leaned close to her ear. "Beloved, we've fought so hard and gone through so much to get here. Don't stop fighting now."  
  
Max sighed, knowing he was right, despite the pain that screamed throughout her entire being.  
  
The doctor smiled encouragingly and nodded, "Almost there. And...push!"  
  
"One, two," Logan began counting, still supporting Max's back and shoulders.  
  
Max pushed with all her strength until she heard the doctor cry, "It's crowning. Come on, keep pushing."  
  
Max's entire body felt as though it was on fire. She could feel the pressure of the baby and knew it was almost over. She kept pushing and screamed, "SONUVABITCH!"  
  
"Okay, stop pushing!" the doctor instructed as a nurse scrambled to clean the baby's mouth and nose.  
  
Max's eyes flew open as a new kind of pain coursed through her. The baby was half in and half out and it burned like hell. She knew that they needed to suction the mucus form the baby before she could push the rest of it out, but it didn't make it hurt any less. "Oh god, Logan," she moaned as fresh tears fell. "It's burning!" Her voice came in gasps as she struggled for a deep breath. She had never been in a battle that had left her this winded. Labor was a completely different kind of fight.  
  
"Almost there, honey," Logan said, taking her in his arms and holding her tightly, rocking her briefly before the doctor told Max she could push again.  
  
"Last one, I promise," the doctor said. "One last big one and you can rest and see your baby."  
  
Logan felt Max take a deep breath and he began to count, "One, two."  
  
Despite all of her pain, Max could hear flashes of memory, things in her past that for some reason or another were coming back to her. The sound of Logan's counting faded from her hearing as time seemed to come to a standstill. His voice was replaced by the voices of memory.  
  
~~*~~  
"You're a thief?"   
  
"Girl's got to make a living."   
  
"Thank God."  
  
"First time I ever heard that one."   
  
"I was expecting someone else."   
  
"Guess it wasn't the pizza delivery guy. "  
  
~~*~~  
  
Logan could feel his wife's entire body strain as she struggled to bring their child into the world. He continued counting, "Three, four."  
  
~~*~~  
  
"How did you find me?"   
  
"Wasn't hard. Look... if I made you nervous or uncomfortable or creeped you out..."  
  
"Yes...on all counts."   
  
" Well, I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention. I had to see you. I haven't been able to get you off my mind. "  
  
"You need to get out more."  
  
~~*~~  
  
"Five, six," Logan counted slowly and deliberately as Max pushed with all her might. He squeezed her hands reassuringly.  
  
~~*~~  
  
"What can I do?"   
  
"Stay with me, please?"  
  
"I'm right here."   
  
"You won't leave?"   
  
"I'm not going anywhere."  
  
~~*~~  
  
"Seven, eight," Logan continued, watching as a nurse stepped up with a receiving blanket. *Almost there,* he thought to himself, wondering what Max was thinking.  
  
~~*~~  
  
"It's you I'm worried about."  
  
"I'll miss you."  
  
"If you die on me, I'll kick your ass. "  
  
"Dance with me."   
  
"I can't."   
  
"Sure, you can. Mind over matter."   
  
"See, my problem is I can't walk."   
  
"I'm not asking you to walk. Just dance. "  
  
"Whose dream is this, anyway... Yours or mine?"   
  
"Don't ask me."   
  
"You okay?"   
  
"Yeah. I'm just a little dizzy."   
  
"Do you want to stop?"   
  
"No. Don't let go."   
"I won't."   
  
"Promise?"   
  
"I promise."   
  
"Logan... Don't leave me."  
  
~~*~~  
  
"Nine," Logan found he was holding his own breath, in anticipation of being a father.  
  
~~*~~  
  
"I got a surprise for you. Cover your eyes."   
  
"It's like some kind of miracle."  
  
"You're the miracle. You did this. You gave me back my life."  
  
~~*~~  
  
Ten," Logan said finitely, waiting for their baby's cry to pierce the air.  
  
~~*~~  
  
"It's worth noting, while you're right--my mission is saving the world--it doesn't mean that I don't worry about you"   
  
"Worry accomplishes nothing. But it's nice to know that you think of me as more than your own private cat burglar."  
  
"Way more."  
  
"Can I take that to mean that my name shows up now and then in those little poems of yours?"  
  
" Without stepping right into an admission that I do, in fact, write poetry... maybe. "  
  
"Maybe, huh? So when do I get to scroll through your lyrical pen scratchings?"   
  
"Uh, you don't. And boy, do I wish you'd stop bringing it up."   
  
"Why do you always get so embarrassed about this?"   
  
"Because my dad was one of those manly men who thought introspection meant you were weak."  
  
"You really want to see one of my poems?"  
  
" You wrote this about me?"  
  
"Yeah, it's about you."  
  
~~*~~  
As she finished pushing, it was as if someone had thrown a switch on the real world, and all of the sound came rushing up all at once. Max cried out in exhaustion and heard the beautiful sound of her baby crying.  
  
"It's a girl!" the doctor announced happily, holding the wailing child up for her parents to see.  
  
Logan's eyes instantly welled with tears and he kissed Max's head. She was resting tiredly against his chest, her eyes closed. "Do you hear that Max? We have a daughter. We were right. It's a girl."  
  
Max's eyes opened slowly and they too were filled with tears, "I want to see her."  
  
"Want to cut the cord, Dad?" the doctor asked.  
  
Logan slipped out from behind Max and cautiously cut the cord, an amazed expression on his face. A nurse wrapped their daughter in a blanket and placed her in his arms. Logan smiled as he peered down at his baby girl, who was still crying, although admittedly at a lower decibel than before. "Hi there, sweetheart," he crooned. "Let's go meet your mommy." He placed her on Max's chest and watched as his wife began to weep.  
  
"She's so beautiful!" Max wept, smiling at Logan, before returning her gaze to her daughter. She couldn't take her eyes off her.   
  
A nurse came over and began pulling down the front of Max's gown. "You should begin nursing her right away," the nurse said. "It'll help bond you two and will speed along the afterbirth."  
  
Tentatively, with the nurse's help, Max held her daughter to her bare breast and watched as their daughter, with eyes closed, immediately took to Max's nipple and began sucking hungrily. "Look, Logan," she whispered in amazement.  
  
"Looks like Jacqueline Eva Gabrielle follows her stomach, just like her momma," Logan said happily.  
  
Max smiled at him, inhaling the scent of their daughter that was uniquely and endearing her own beautiful baby scent. She felt exhausted and slightly lightheaded, but she thought it was form the exertion of the labor. However, the more Max dwelled on how she felt, she discovered she was also feeling detached and rubbery. She looked at Logan and her head felt as though it weighed a million pounds. Her vision began to blur. "Logan," she murmured.  
  
Logan looked on in shock as Max's eyes fluttered and her head lulled back on the pillow. Without thinking, he took the baby from Max's arms, fearful that Jacqueline would fall. "Doctor!" he cried.  
  
Almost instantaneously, the heart monitor that had been connected to Max began to scream loudly as her heartbeat changed erratically.   
  
"She's in V-tach!" a nurse cried, as another snatched the baby from Logan's arms.  
  
"Dammit, she's hemorrhaging!" the doctor said. She began yelling instructions to the medical personal in the room.  
  
Logan looked on in horror as his wife was laid down on the bed and all unnecessary equipment was moved out of the way. They placed electrodes on her chest while others performed CPR, placed an ambu bag over her nose and mouth.  
  
"She's not breathing!" a nurse called out.  
  
"Let's intubate," the doctor said from her position at Max's legs as she tried to stop the bleeding. She called for various clotting drugs, as well as bags of blood for transfusion and an amp of epinephrine, in case Max's heart stopped.  
  
Logan found a clearing between the doctors and nurses. He leaned down close to Max's ear, as tears of fear replaced his previous tears of joy. "Fight it Max," he whispered fiercely, his voice choking. "Fight Max. Don't leave. Stay here with us. Stay with me."  
  
"Stay with us!" the doctor called as she took over CPR after another doctor took over trying to stop the bleeding.  
  
"Fight Max!" Logan whispered, aware of a crash cart being rolled into the room.  
  
Just then, the most awful sound Logan could have heard pierced the air.  
  
"She's flat lining!" a nurse cried.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
::Ducks:: I know! You must all hate me for leaving you there, and giving you such a torturous ending after that long of a chapter but hey, that's why you all love me. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to write. Please read and review!  
  



	13. As the Dreams Begin to Crumble...

Author's Notes-::ducks thrown knives:: I know I know! You're all waiting to kill me because you think I'm offing Max. Well…just read this chapter and you'll get your answer! Yes, I am a wicked, wicked author. Anywho, you know the drill. It ain't mine; all of it belongs to the Longwinded Cameron and Chick the Bald. Remember, there's potential spoilers for everything up to and including "Female Trouble" and prolly "I and I Am Camera" but everything else never happened. Ben (aka Johnny) isn't dead or a psycho, Tinga has no children nor is she married, Brin's good, Manticore went down my way, blah blah blah… okay, here goes…please R&R!   
______________________________________________________________________________  
  
  
"She's flat lining!"   
  
  
In the waiting area, each of Max's siblings heard the doctor's shout. Their advanced hearing had pretty much availed them to hearing most of what went on in Max's room, but they had chosen, out of respect for their sister and brother-in-law's privacy, to not listen. However, when Tinga had overheard the heart monitor begin to scream in warning of Max's dangerously irregular heartbeat, she had shot out of her chair. Tinga had been tense about Max's delivery, sitting a bit apart from her siblings, lost in her own thoughts. But now she was standing ramrod straight, every muscle and nerve in her body tense as she listened for her sister.   
  
"Tinga?" Zack asked, rising from his chair.   
  
Suddenly, he heard it too. His face turned pale.   
  
Bling and Original Cindy watched as similar looks of horror and dread crossed each of the X-5's faces. "What's wrong?" Cindy demanded, looking worriedly at Bling, who could only offer a shrug.   
  
Just then, the nurse carrying Jacqueline raced out of Max's room, bringing the newborn to the nursery. As she passed the waiting room, Zack stepped in front of her. "What's wrong with our sister?"   
  
"What's happening?" Jondy asked.   
  
Tinga stood mute.   
  
The nurse looked at the entire assembly of people, and remembered the doctor mentioning something about the woman's large family. She peered down at the baby and tried not to hear the scream of the monitors and the shouted orders coming from the room she had just left. Sighing, she said with practiced sympathy and emotional detachment, "You sister suffered some complications in childbirth. She began hemorrhaging and she went into ventricular tachycardia, which means-"   
  
"We know what it means," Krit said, somewhat bitterly. They had been taught extensive medical training at Manticore, in the event something catastrophic happened in the field.   
  
"Will she be okay?" Brin asked as Jace and Syl quietly led Tinga to a chair. A few of their siblings watched from the corner of their eyes. They were afraid she was going to pass out. They knew her reaction went far beyond sisterly concern. It went far deeper. It was primal fear and the horror of painful memory upon painful memory coming back to haunt her with a violent passion. They all experienced it, being children of Manticore. But none of them knew quite how to comfort a sister who was reliving the pain of the death of her own child.   
  
The nurse looked at the assembled and sighed, clutching the baby to her chest, "The doctors are doing everything they can."   
  
"Can we see the baby?" Zane asked softly.   
  
The nurse half smiled and held the baby girl up for her aunts and uncles to see. "Your sister gave birth to a little girl," she told them.   
  
"What's her name?" Johnny asked.   
  
"Jacqueline Eva Gabrielle Cale," Syl answered, as Original Cindy traded places with her next to Tinga.   
  
"You okay boo?" Cindy asked softly. She knew Max was in the hands of Fate, or, as Herbal would say, the Almighty. As worried as she was about her Homegirl, Original Cindy knew worrying would accomplish nothing. Her efforts would be better spent taking care of her boo's sistahs girl. Tinga, however, was unresponsive. She just stared at the door to Max's room. When she became aware that the baby was being shown, she rose, to the surprise of Jace and Cindy, who, after exchanging glances, followed close behind.   
  
Tinga stepped up to the nurse and pulled the blanket back slightly, to reveal her niece's face. Gently, Tinga kissed the top of the baby's head and whispered, "Don't worry baby girl, we'll make sure your mommy's alright."   
  
The nurse smiled kindly at her and took Jacqueline to the nursery.   
  
Max's siblings were left standing in the waiting room, feeling helpless and worried.   
  
  
  
Inside Max's room, doctors and nurses were struggling to get Max's heart started again. Logan stayed as close to her as he was allowed. Max's Ob/Gyn knew that he would not leave unless under duress, so she told him he could stay as long as he didn't get in the way.   
  
"Talk to her!" she snapped at him, as they once again waited for the paddles to recharge. She was pounding on Max's chest, performing CPR as a nurse squeezed the ambu bag to provide Max with oxygen. Another doctor was at Max's other end, trying to stop the bleeding. They had hung a few units of Max's own blood that her other physician had suggested they store, but it wasn't going to be enough to replenish all the blood she was losing. Their plan was to get her heart going again and then get her into surgery to stop the bleeding.   
  
Logan nodded dimly and inched closer to Max's ear, bringing his lips close. "Max!" he hissed in her ear, his voice choked by tears and fear at the thought of losing her. He spoke her name over and over, a litany, a prayer, to get her to wake up. Sharply, he clapped his hands close to her ear to wake her. No dice. "Dammit!" he growled. He looked up at the doctor, who was still performing CPR. She nodded in encouragement before returning her attention to the task at hand.   
  
Once again, Logan tried to rouse his wife. "Listen to me, Max Cale! Wake up! Please wake up, sweetheart!" Desperation filled his chest and despair filled his soul. He couldn't lose her. Not again. He had to get her back. "You can't leave Max. Do you hear me? We have a baby girl who needs her momma and I'm not going to let this take her mother away. You need to fight honey. Fight harder than you ever have before."   
  
"Clear!" a nurse yelled, and everyone stepped back as the doctor zapped Max's heart with 300 joules.   
  
"Another amp of epi, push it, and charge again," she ordered.   
  
"Continuing CPR," the nurse declared, resuming compressions on Max's chest.   
  
"How're we doing?" the doctor asked her colleague.   
  
"We need to get her stable and in the O.R. ASAP to get the bleeding under control," the other doctor said.   
  
"Time down?" a nurse asked.   
  
"Five and a half minutes," another replied.   
  
"Push the epi, and zap her again," the doctor ordered.   
  
"Fight Max," Logan murmured repeatedly, in a litany, "Fight."   
  
"Charging."   
  
"Fight."   
  
"Clear!"   
  
"Fight!" Logan yelled, almost as a military order. The tears streamed down his face as he watched his wife's body leap off the table as electricity coursed through her body.   
  
Everyone in the room held their breaths waiting for something to happen, their eyes glued to the cardiac monitor. Hours seemed to pass as they waited.   
  
"Please, please, please, please, please," Logan whispered, looking at Max's face. She looked like she was only sleeping. "Come back."   
  
"Come on back," the doctor said. "Come on dammit."   
  
"Max!" Logan yelled.   
  
*BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!* The heart monitor sprang to life. And so did Max.   
  
"We've got a heartbeat," a nurse announced. "Resps are good."   
  
"Okay, let's get her to the OR," the doctor said. She walked over to Logan. "Mr. Cale, your wife needs immediate surgery to keep her from bleeding to death. We need you to consent to the surgery." She took a breath, "Also, please be aware that your wife's condition is serious. If we can't stop her uterus from hemorrhaging, we may need to perform a radical hysterectomy."   
  
Logan felt numb, "I-I need to consent to that too?"   
  
The doctor nodded.   
  
Logan looked to his wife, who was now swaddled in blankets, the sides of her bed up, the nurses waiting to transport her. He knew how devastating this kind of operation was to women. His mother had had one and it had left her depressed for weeks. He knew how important having all their reproductive organs was to women, and he didn't want to be the one responsible for his wife having to lose something that innately important. However, by the same token, he didn't want her to die. Trying to make the decision he thought Max would make were she able to, Logan looked squarely at the doctor and said, "Do what you can to stop the bleeding. Make the hysterectomy your final option. Your last resort. My wife has some medical training, so I'm sure she understands the risks."   
  
The doctor nodded and Max was rolled out of the room. Logan jogged along as far as he could, looking down at his wife, praying she would be all right. "Just a little bit more. Hang on just a little longer sweetheart," he whispered. He watched her be rolled into the operating room and he felt the tears stream down his face.   
  
  
He didn't know how long he had been standing there. It felt like hours. He was overwhelmed. His wife was in there, fighting for life. His baby was presumably in the nursery. And he could do nothing. He, for the umpteenth time throughout the entire pregnancy, felt helpless. Max was the one who had to do all the work, and he could no nothing but wait. Again.   
  
Suddenly, he felt a gentle hand rest on his shoulder. He turned and found himself looking at Tinga. Her eyes shone with tears, reflecting her own understanding. She truly did understand the pain of childbirth, more so then perhaps many of the others. Although her baby had not survived, she knew the turmoil Logan was feeling. Without speaking, she wrapped her arms around him and held him. His body felt stiff and rigid at first, but she continued to hold on fiercely, hoping she could give him some of the strength he needed. Finally, she felt Logan's body relax. He wrapped his arms around her and let her hold him, comfort him, be a sister to him. She led him to a couch and held him again, rocking him as a mother would. Her siblings looked on in quiet respect.   
  
Logan did not sob. Instead, he wept quietly. Tinga smoothed his hair. Eventually, she persuaded him to take a catnap.   
  
"I want to go see the baby. I need to hold her," he protested.   
  
"I know," Tinga said softly. "But rest a little first." Nodding dimly, Logan swung his long legs over the end of the couch and lay on his back, his head in his sister-in-law's lap. Reluctantly, he shut his eyes and was instantly claimed by sleep.   
  
  
Tinga stared down at him for a while, before returning her attention to her siblings. Zane and Johnny were, true to form, playing cards. Even back at Manticore, if things had been rough, those two had always come up with a game to keep themselves occupied. Tinga wondered if Johnny was going to try to talk to the Blue Lady later to make sure she'd protect Max. She wondered if she should do it herself. Krit had fallen asleep himself, and was pillowed on Syl's shoulder. Her sister smoothed their brother's hair absently, obviously lost in her own thoughts. Jace was at a payphone, undoubtedly calling home to check on her son. Brin was sitting with Zack, obviously trying to be a support for him, but their big brother was a stubborn SOB. Zack was obviously distraught over his baby sister's condition. They all knew his love for Maxie went beyond brotherly love, but they also knew that Zack had accepted his place in Max's life-and Logan's-long ago. Tinga managed to catch his gaze and mouthed, "It'll be okay." She could see in Zack's eyes that he wanted to believe her. He held her gaze for a few more moments before returning his to the bizarrely patterned carpet.   
  
Tinga noticed that Original Cindy was also on the phone, most likely talking to Kendra. The normally stoic, hard-assed black woman was looking downright distraught herself and Tinga smiled warmly at her when their gazes briefly met. Cindy nodded in appreciation and understanding before returning her full attention to her conversation.   
  
"You're a lucky woman, Maxie," Tinga thought to herself as she gently eased Logan's head out of her lap and set it down on the couch as she rose. She found herself walking towards the nursery, and didn't realize that was her destination until she found herself staring at the infant whose nameplate read "Baby Girl Cale." Tinga made a mental note to remind Logan that his first order of business should be to update the nursing staff on his daughter's name. Then she felt a large hand on her shoulder.   
  
"Here," Bling said, handing her a cup of coffee. "It's still fresh. Brewed last month with Seattle's finest horse piss."   
  
Tinga smiled gratefully and sipped the noxiously strong and bitter liquid, letting the heat of it burn her throat in a perversely soothing manner. She looked up and Bling, then back to her niece. "She's gonna be okay right?"   
  
"Yeah," Bling answered. "You're sister's a strong woman. She's gonna be fine."   
  
"Right," Tinga answered softly, still watching her niece yawn and squirm slightly in her sleep. "Fine.   
  
Just then, a surgical nurse burst through the OR doors. Bling was at Logan's side in a flash, waking him, as Max's siblings jumped to their feet. They watched as the nurse walked up to Logan, who was rubbing the sleep from his eyes.   
  
"What's wrong?" he asked, his concern thick in his voice.   
  
"Your wife has lost a lot of blood," the nurse began.   
  
Panic overwhelmed Logan and he sank back into the couch. Bling stood at his side, his hand on Logan's shoulder, while Original Cindy, who had hurriedly hung up with Kendra, sat beside him. Tinga, for her part, remained near the nursery, listening to the nurse's words thanks to her supped-up hearing.   
  
"Is my wife going to die?" Logan asked brokenly.   
  
The nurse simply said, with practiced professional concern and sympathy. "The doctors think they are going to be able to stop the internal bleeding and there's a chance they might be able to avoid hysterectomy. But the more immediate concern is replacing all the blood your wife lost." The nurse looked to the assembled, who she was informed were the patient's siblings, most of them, and continued. "Your wife's Ob/Gyn has talked with a hematologist, and given your wife's recent, and long standing medical history, they want type-specific blood that is a genetic match."   
  
"They want our blood," Krit murmured. For a moment, each of the X-5s was transported back to Manticore, where they had been experimented on as children. Each briefly remembered the horror and fought the fire of the memories that threatened to suck them back in.   
  
"Then we'll do it," Zack said firmly, ever the CO. He was grateful Logan had found doctors for Max who believed the cover story, and with some well-placed donations to the hospital, did not do invasive digging into Max's genetics and blood work. Such experimentation would be dangerous to them all, even in this time of national recovery that was finally Lydecker-free. Zack made a mental note to break into the hospital and yank Max's file after she recovered and was sent home.   
  
"Two units each should be sufficient," the nurse said with a smile, interpreting their looks of dread as a fear of needles. Mentally, she was wondering how people of such varied ethnicity could all be genetic matches for the patient and each other. If she hadn't known of the match, she would have thought them all adopted. "This way." With that, she turned and led them off to the blood bank, where she was under specific orders to get the blood drawn, and get it back to the OR, without screening. The doctor said the patient's siblings had already been screened.   
  
"Thank you," Logan murmured sincerely to his brothers and sisters-in-law, as they filed behind the nurse, trying their hardest not to feel as though they were lambs being led to the slaughter, as they were so used to. He watched them depart and noticed how Zack gently touched Tinga's elbow and led her away from the nursery glass. Logan then began to fully realize how much this must have been affecting Tinga, given her history. He admired her strength and courage. Especially since he found himself considerably lacking those traits at the moment.   
  
"She's gonna be fine boo," Original Cindy said gently. "You heard the woman."   
  
Logan nodded, feeling as though his head was attached to a rubber band that was about to snap. He looked from his wife's friend to his best friend and said, "I want to see my daughter." They nodded and offered to walk him down to the nursery. He declined, knowing he needed to gain some strength on his own, and not leach it from his friends and family. Slowly, he made his way toward the nursery. "I've got to tell them her name," he thought, as he saw the sign on the side of his daughter's cradle that read "Baby Girl Cale." He tapped on the window and the nurse who had taken his daughter when Max had arrested saw him. She indicated that he come inside.   
  
Logan anxiously gowned up, per the nurse's orders. Since Jacquie was a premature newborn, they were giving her oxygen, monitoring her levels and lung capacity, and trying to keep her as germ-free as possible. Her father, on the other hand, probably could have used some oxygen himself. He was a wreck. He was anxious and excited to see and hold his new baby daughter, and yet at the same time he felt immense pain, heartache, worry, and guilt. Max should have been sharing this moment with him. Instead, she was fighting for her life, a few hundred yards away on an operating table.   
  
Ushered in by the nurse, Logan slowly made his way towards Jacqueline's plastic bassinet. Before looking at her, he turned to the nurse. In a voice that was strong and quiet, he said, "My daughter's name is Jacqueline Eva Gabrielle Cale."   
  
The nurse smiled kindly, "One of your sister-in-laws told me. I just wanted to double check with you." She touched his arm gently. "I'll change it right away. Don't worry about picking her up." She leaned into the cradle and removed the baby's oxygen tube from her nose. "Her levels are fine, and her lungs seem fully developed. Your baby, despite coming early, is in perfect health."   
  
Logan smiled gratefully and watched the nurse move away to attend to the other babies. Finally, he let himself get a good look at his daughter. She was sleeping. She was clean. She was perfect. She had Max's coloring, and, from what he had briefly seen, his wife's raven colored hair that he was sure would be as thick and luxurious as Max's as Jacquie aged. However, Logan could see in his daughter's face the Cale family features. Truthfully, he hoped she had inherited more of Max's family traits (sans the genetic defects and Max's cat-like need for very little sleep). He was even willing to have a daughter with Zack's pig-headedness. Maybe she had even inherited some of the traits his mother had passed onto him. One thing he did not want his child to be was a Cale in anything but name.   
  
Gingerly reaching into the bassinet, Logan lifted his daughter into his arms, amazed my how feather-light and delicate she was. She was warm, and he could feel her tiny body breathe as he held her close to his chest. He walked across the room and sat them in a rocking chair. Breathing in her unique baby scent, Logan closed his eyes and smiled. Peering down at his daughter, Logan whispered, "Hey baby girl. Welcome to the world. I wish your mommy could be here right now, but the doctors are fixing her up. She went through a lot to make sure you got here healthy and I know she's not going to go anywhere until long after she sees what a great job she did keeping you safe and warm." He struggled to keep his voice from breaking. "We both love you very much. I can't believe we made you. You're so perfect."   
  
Just then, Jacquie woke up. But, rather than crying, she stared right at Logan, as though she recognized him as her father. He was shocked to find himself staring back into reflections of his own clear blue eyes. He remembered Max saying how much she wished their baby would have his eyes. She loved his eyes. "I can't wait till your momma can see you," Logan whispered to his baby, who had fallen back asleep. He closed his eyes and rocked them both.   
  
  
  
Max's eyes were closed too. She was on the table in the operating room down the hall from where he husband and daughter were, bonding together, her daughter sleeping contentedly in her husband's arms, her husband taking what solace he could from the presence of his new born baby girl, while down the hall his wife was being operated on. She was intubated, with a machine breathing for her, heavily anesthetized, her skin pale and ashen. Above her, a team of doctors and nurses worked tirelessly to stop her internal bleeding. They were closely monitoring her vital signs, for fear of her flatling again. Several times during the surgery, her blood pressure had fluctuated dangerously and they had hooked her up to a heart/lung by pass to take the stress of her heart.   
  
Finally, the doctors were able to stop the bleeding. With a sigh of relief, they began stitching her up, glad they had not been forced to perform the radical hysterectomy. One of the doctors ordered a few units of her sibling's blood transfused before they took her off by-pass. Two units were hung, and half an hour later, she was taken off the machine. She was wheeled into the recovery room, where they decided to take her off the ventilator to see if she could breathe on her own. She could and she did. Hanging another unit of blood, the nurses and orderlies wheeled Max back into her room.   
  
She was wheeled past her siblings, who had stood, watching her with concern on their faces. Logan had seen her be wheeled past also, and he ran out of the nursery, in his haste forgetting to put Jacquie back in her bassinet. A nurse ran after him and kindly took the baby. Max's family was informed that the surgery had gone well, that her uterus had been left in her body, that all they could do now was wait and see if the transfusions helped. They were informed that she was sleeping now, and that it would be best of they went home to rest. They all refused, and told Logan to go in and sit with her. He did. He held her hand and smoothed her hair and watched as unit after unit of her siblings' blood was transfused into her. He talked to her and kissed her forehead.   
  
And Max dreamed...   
  



	14. ...The Memories Arise

Author's Notes: This is Max's dream. It is a continuation of the last chapter. It contains even that happened before the prologue and before the pregnancy was introduced. Basically, it's the Max/Logan coupleness stuff…   
______________________________________________________________________________  
  
  
  
  
"Move in with me."   
  
Max sucked in a breath. It was neither question nor request, statement or order. It was merely said. She and Logan were lying in his bed, in *their* bed, for that was what it had become. Max hardly ever slept at her and Cindy's crib any more. Whether or not she and Logan made love, it didn't matter. Since Manticore's destruction, Max had felt safest in his arms. He had taken her to the cabin, and they had holed themselves up inside for the weekend, letting the snow settle around them as they curled up in front of the fireplace. They spent many nights at his pent house curled up on the couch or in bed watching pre-Pulse movies. They even went out to Crash every now and again, and always seemed to end up at his place. It felt like home.   
  
So why, when he uttered those four words, did she freeze? Was she afraid? Did moving in make it real, make it serious, make it forever? Was she reluctant to give up the last shred of her single life? Did it scare her to think that, save when she was at work or out with the crew, she would be spending every waking and sleeping and in between moment with Logan? Did it frighten her to think that permanently living with him would mark him as a target for anyone else looking to put Lydecker's transgenic freaks in a cage or worse? Did she love him too much to put him in that position?   
  
Yes. All of the above.   
  
She could feel his eyes boring into the back of her head as she lay spooned against his virtually naked body. He was wearing a pair of boxers, and so was she, with a tank top. But she was cold. She snaked one of her legs between his and felt him pull her even closer to his body. And yet he didn't ask again, didn't beg, didn't back down. He didn't have to. The feeling that filled her belly and spread throughout her body and went straight to her heart was enough.   
  
She rolled over and wrapped her arms around him, her hair falling in a dark curtain around them. She looked deep into his crystal blue depths and brought herself down on top of him so that every part of their body touched. She rested her head on his chest and felt him play with her hair. She kissed his chest lightly.   
  
"Okay."   
  
  
~*~   
  
  
"Marry me."   
  
Max's eyes opened so wide she thought they were going to fly right out of her head. She was shocked to the point of speechlessness. That too was a fact that shock her. She, Max Guevara, ultimate bitch and Manticore-trained hard ass warrior, the one who always had a biting comment, was speechless.   
  
It was summer and Logan has surprised her at work, showing up with a change of clothes and instructions to get ready. Cindy had helped her dress so that Logan wouldn't be left waiting too long. He had brought her a dark purple stretchy knee length skirt with a slit up one side, a form fitting black T-shirt that had a V-neck, and black strappy heeled sandals. Her boo had commented that hotboy had something up his sleeve if he'd brought Max dress up clothes. They pinned her hair up much like they had for Bennett's wedding, and Max and Logan were on their way.   
  
Surprisingly, he had brought her to the Space Needle. She had looked at him questioningly. He explained that he knew she only came here at night or in the early pre-dawn hours, and he thought it would be nice for them to watch the sunset. The only problem sunset wasn't for another few hours. Confused, but game, Max had agreed and they used the juice from Logan's car to jump start the generator that would make the old elevator work-Max was too dressed up to scale the building like she usually did and Logan had been absent minded enough to forget the repelling line for two. They had ridden up in amicable silence, but just before the lift doors opened, Logan placed a hand over Max's eyes. He had led her into the old restaurant and removed his hand to reveal that it was decorated with twinkling white Christmas lights, and an elaborately set dining table. Logan had explained that he'd pulled in a few Eyes Only favors and gotten hassle free use of the abandoned Space Needle for the evening. He had even enlisted Bling to act as waiter. The reason? It was their two year anniversary. Two years ago she had broken into his apartment and changed both their lives. One year ago he had asked her to move in with him. She was overwhelmed and felt slightly guilty. She had forgotten.   
  
After they ate, Bling left, and Max noticed the sun was beginning to set. Logan had turned music on in a portable CD player and led her to the window, where he wrapped his arms around her and they watched the sunset, as he kissed her forehead or neck every so often. She was truly in heaven. The sunset was truly spectacular. Max wondered why she'd never thought to come up here and watch it. The colors were brilliant and the sky was filled with fiery oranges and pinks as the clouds were smattered with purple. Logan even had God and Mother Nature on his side.   
  
As the last rays of the sun painted the sky and the fiery ball began to set below the horizon, Logan changed the song on the CD player. And then they danced with the beautiful sky as their backdrop. She rested her head on his chest and they moved in small rhythmic circles. Suddenly the music changed to something more up beat, something Logan called "swing". He taught her to swing dance, something he had apparently learned in college, and they laughed. Then he had spun her away from him. The room was getting darker as the sun disappeared and their only light was whatever ambient light was provided by the city below them, and the Christmas lights that Bling and Logan had strung up. Logan had lit candles and held his hand out to her. She had walked to him, expecting another dance.   
  
Instead, Logan had pulled something from his pocket and got down on one knee. Max had no idea what was going on.   
  
"What are you doing?"   
  
"Max," he had begun. "I love you so much."   
  
Still utterly baffled, Max had replied. "I love you too."   
  
He smiled, knowing she was confused, and continued. "I don't know if I will ever be able to tell you how much, or how much you mean to me. You are the best thing that's ever happened to me. I hope you know how much I love you."   
  
"I do," she said earnestly. What was he doing?   
  
"Once upon a time, love was its own planet," he began. "When the world was first created, the gods were dismayed that they had made such a beautiful paradise, yet nothing inhabited it. So, the gods created the human heart, and it beat loud and strong. Then one day, the heart began to falter in its beating and the gods were dismayed. So they created another heart, as a companion for the first-it was the female heart." He stopped and looked up into her eyes. He could tell she loved the story, even if she had no idea why he was telling it from on bended knee. He continued, his voice barely above a whisper, "Together, the two hearts beat loud and strong. They beat so strongly that their power noise frightened the gods."   
  
Max got scared now, thinking this was some weird way he was trying to tell her some new danger was coming into their lives. She dropped to her knees as well so that they were eye to eye. He stopped when she did that, and looked as though he was about to say something, then thought better of it. "Can I continue with the story?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.   
  
"Continue."   
  
"The gods were frightened and they tried to destroy the two hearts. Nevertheless, the hearts were too strong and more powerful than the gods were. Together, they expelled the gods and banished them to a far and distant edge of Time." He moved closer to her and took her face in his hands. To her astonishment, there were tears in his eyes. Her heart thundered. Smoothing her hair from her face, he murmured, "The hearts were One: strong, a powerful force. Man and woman. Lovers. Never to be parted."   
  
"That was beautiful," she whispered. "Logan, what are you doing?"   
  
He smiled, "You still honestly don't know?"   
  
"No!" she exclaimed. "One minute I'm at work, the next minute you get me all dolled up and bring me up here where Bling's playing waiter and the next thing I know we're dancing and now you're telling me a story." She took a deep breath, "What's going on?"   
  
Logan smiled, "Max, I'm asking you to marry me."   
  
"What?" she was astonished. She rose to her feet and he followed.   
  
"You don't want to?" he asked, the hurt creeping into his eyes.   
  
"No," she said. "Yes!" she exclaimed quickly, realizing what she had just said. "Of course I want to marry you, but, I mean, are you sure? You want to marry me?" What was he thinking? "You want to be forever wedded to a child of Manticore, a freak?"   
  
"Stop it," he said firmly, tipping her chin towards him with this index finger. "I will never be sorry that I met you, that I know you, that I fell in love with you, that I went through everything I've gone through with you. I made my decision. I want you. There isn't a part of you I'm not in love with." He kissed her, and tugged on her lip playfully, "I've always wanted you. I always want you."   
  
Tears filled Max's eyes, "Even when I'm old and gray?"   
  
Logan took her into his arms and nuzzled her gently, "I'll love you until the stars go out."   
  
Lovingly, she caressed his face, playing with the stubble on his chin, "I don't deserve you."   
  
"You deserve better," he whispered.   
  
"Never," she said sharply. "You are the best thing in my life, period." She flung her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. "Of course I'll marry you. I need you so much; I depend on you. You are such a huge part of my life."   
  
"You are my life," he told her, kissing her deeply and passionately. They were both weeping with joy. He embraced her as he felt her tears dampen his skin, "No more tears love." He ran his hands soothingly up and down her back, sending shivers down her spine. "We've both cried too much. The time for tears is over."   
  
Max pulled away and smiled, wiping away her tears and his, "I know. Everything's perfect now."   
  
Logan smiled and slipped the most gorgeous ring she had ever seen on her finger.   
  
  
~*~   
  
  
"Mrs. Cale?"   
  
"Yes, Mr. Cale?"   
  
"Will you dance with me?"   
  
"I'd be honored."   
  
They were on their honeymoon. The candlelight made romantic shadows waltz along the painted walls. Incense fragranced the air with the scents of lilies and lilacs and peaches; oxygen had become an aphrodisiac. Softly, music that streamed from a CD player augmented the mood as the lovers danced. Rather, they were clinging to each other and calling it dancing. In tiny circles, the man and woman moved as one, arms wrapped around each other; they were afraid to make steps that were even a fraction larger out for fear of separation. Max, dressed in a soft blue muslin silk dress with corded straps, buried her face in the hollow between Logan's neck and shoulder and felt amazing contentment- she fit perfectly, as though the nook had been crafted for her and her alone. Her bare feet floated across the hardwood floor, her legs brushing against his every-so-often as they swayed in a beautifully synchronous union, to the point where they were sure their hearts were beating as one. She felt safe in his strong arms and held him fiercely, absorbing his warmth, allowing his breath to tickle her ear and send magnificent shivers down her spine.   
  
Just the same, he held her. As he felt her arms tighten around him, he tightened his own hold, tracing abstract patterns on her back, pulling her tightly to him, afraid to let go. He stroked her hair-hair that smelt like lavender and felt smooth as silk-and caressed her waist. He smiled and kissed the crown of her skull as she rested her head on his chest. She infused his body with warmth and love and he felt like flying. Through the thin cotton of his shirt, he could feel her chest rhythmically rise and fall in time to her breathing; his pants rustled against his skin as she moved her lean legs between his own. They were one person now: moving, thinking, breathing, existing as one.   
  
They danced by the table, which held the remnants of dinner: half-eaten salads; baked chicken, nearly gone, its bones resting lazily on a bed of rice pilaf and broccoli florets; a half-empty decanter of champagne beside equally empty crystalline flutes. Candles adorned the table, the wax dripping and running down the sides, pooling and reconvening finally, at the base. Decorating the villa were candles of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Candles seemed to inhabit every nook and cranny: windowsills, bookshelves, tables, mantle, floor, and wall-hanging candelabras.   
  
Anticipating what was in store and relishing the perfect end to a perfect evening, the couple danced closer and closer to a blanket and pillows that were carefully laid in front of the crackling fireplace. The room was warm from the fire, warm from the exertion of dancing, warm with romance and passion and the intensity of love. "Do you know how much I love you?" she murmured softly in his ear, her lips brushing his skin, her breath tingling his nerves.   
  
"Love is its own country," he replied, lowering his hands, promising better things yet to come.   
  
"Take me to that country," she pleaded, running her fingers through his thick, sandy hair, pressing their foreheads together. She moved her hands up and down his back while his fingers worked the buttons of her dress; still, they danced. Soon the dress was undone and it fell to the floor. She stepped out of it and began unbuttoning his shirt. Still, they swayed. Within moments, his shirt was free and she took it off him, lightly brushing her lips across his chest, before moving on to his pants. He moved slightly, to accommodate her, and swept her across the room, dancing.   
  
She had made quick work of his belt and zipper and he scooped her up in his arms, kissing her fiercely. She took his head in her hands and kissed his temples, eyes, eyelids, nose, cheeks, until finally, she found her way to her lips. As she moved her cool hands across his bare back, she whispered, "Take me."   
  
He gently lowered her to the blanket, resting her head delicately on a pillow, nuzzling his face against her belly. He kissed her flesh, smiling against its warmth and comfort. She brought his face to hers for a kiss and freed him of his pants. "I love you," he murmured as they began ridding each other of all remaining clothing. He could smell the perfume wafting from her neck, perfume he bought for her and no one else and never would again-and never thought he would need to, for they were eternal. He guided her hands to places he reserved for their touch alone, and she took him to places he didn't know existed...   
  
  
...Her delicate hand fell across his chest and he brought it to his lips. He gazed down at her and found her staring up at him lovingly. "Hey you," he murmured. "I thought you were asleep."   
  
Max smiled with contentment, stretching her long body, trying to shake the exhaustion away. She glanced at a nearby clock and found the source of her fatigue, other than the obvious-it was two in the morning. Tenderly, she reached up and placed a gentle hand on his face. Logan kissed her palm and she snuggled deeper into his arms. She never felt safer, happier, or more at home than when he held her. She would have been perfectly happy spending the rest of her life in his arms. "This is perfect," she whispered, fighting the desire to fall back to sleep.   
  
Suddenly, she sat up and extracted herself from the blanket. As he watched, she rose and walked to the CD player. Once she had selected the appropriate song, she returned to him and held out her hand. "Dance with me." Her voice was thick with fatigue, breathy and slow. The request was simple and direct, said with love and exhaustion, and he could not refuse her. Logan rose and in one fluid motion took her in his arms as the quiet melody poured from the speakers. Max reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck and he pulled her to him, amazed by the way her body fit perfectly with his. They moved fluidly, in unison, in time to the music. Her head rested against his shoulder and she closed her eyes.   
  
After a time he found her movements lethargic and her body felt heavier. He pulled away slightly and smiled to find her more than half asleep. She murmured incoherently in protest and he kissed her, bring a smile to her face and silence to her protests. With on gentle motion, he swept her up in his arms, saying, "Come, baby." Cradling her in his arms, he walked over and turned off the CD player. He rested her down on the bed and pulled back the blankets; then he climbed in beside her, pulling the warm quilt over them both and once again taking her in his arms. Max snuggled into his embrace and sighed contentedly, finally giving herself over to the clutched of sleep.   
  
"Rest love, sweet angel," Logan whispered in her ear before also giving himself over to sleep. And he slumbered with a smile on his face, holding his angel in his arms….   
  
  
~*~   
  
  
"...Max?" Logan's voice sounded far away. "Max can you hear me?"... "Wake up Maxie," Zack said firmly. The voices were blending together..."Come on back to us boo," Original Cindy said. "Lil Boo needs you"..."Don't make us keep our promise Maxie," Tinga said, pleading..."Max?"   
  
  
"Logan..." Max forced her voice to work. She felt as though she was coming out of a molasses pit. Why had she been dreaming about her past with Logan? Again...   
  
"She's awake!"   
  
"I'll get the doctor...Zack and Tinga, come on with Original Cindy."   
  
"Max?"   
  
Max opened her eyes and shut them again quickly because the lights were too harsh. Gingerly, she opened them again and found herself staring into Logan's perfect blue eyes. They were full of tears and he was smiling. "Welcome back," he said, softly kissing her.   
  
  
~*~   
  
  
A week later Logan was able to bring Max and Jacqueline home. For all she had gone through, Max had regained her strength surprisingly quickly, although she was still under strict orders to rest and take it easy, given everything she had been through the last two months of her pregnancy-orders she knew Logan was going to enforce if she tried to misbehave. They were also under orders to abstain from sex for at least six weeks, due to the trauma Max's body had suffered. That was going to be one rule they were both going to have a hard time enforcing.   
  
The penthouse was decorated from top to bottom with get well cards and card of congratulations, floral arrangements and baby stuff galore. Unbeknownst to Max, as she had only been in the penthouse for a few hours before she had gone into labor, Logan had commissioned the workout room (the one they never really used) turned into a nursery. It had been worked on while she was in the coma and held captive by Lydecker. It was a surprise Logan was looking forward to and the look of surprise, love, and gratitude on Max's face was all he needed.   
  
At first, when they returned, their penthouse was full of people. Max's siblings, Bling, Sebastian, Matt Sung, Original Cindy and the Jam Pony crew (including a brief appearance by Normal, who told Max her old job would be waiting for her whenever she wanted it), all wanted to welcome home the new family. Several of Max's siblings were also saying their goodbyes. They had been in one place for too long and years of being on the run had taken their toll. They knew Jace and Max had found things to keep them in one place. Many of them had not. Krit and Syl were headed north, while Jondy and Brin were going to California. Jace and Victor were moving to a suburb of Seattle, while Zane had chosen to keep his apartment, and was taking brother Johnny in for a roommate. Zack, ever the CO and big brother, was still trying to take care of everyone, and promised Max and Logan he'd be back to see his niece as often as possible. Tinga was going to live with Jace's family for a while, as a babysitter and extra hand for both Maxito and baby Jacqueline.   
  
Once everyone had left the apartment, Max and Logan were finally allowed to breathe. It was not only their first time alone together in literally over a month, but it was their first time alone at home with their new baby. They were overwhelmed and ecstatic. They put the baby down for her nap in a bassinet they had decided to keep in their bedroom for the first few months and then retired to the living room for some time alone. After five minutes they headed back to the bedroom and decided the cuddle time could happen just a easily-maybe even more so-on the bed. They couldn't bear to be away from their daughter.   
  
"How are you?" Logan whispered as they lay holding and facing each other.   
  
Max rested her fingertips on his chin and traced his lower lip gently, "Tired. Content. Delighted." She looked to the bassinet. "She's so perfect."   
  
"We done good, huh mom?" Logan asked, grinning and nipping at his wife's fingertips. He kissed them softly and she snuggled against his chest. "It feels so amazing to have you back in my arms," he murmured after a while.   
  
"We went through a lot for this, huh?" Max said, tightening her hold on him.   
  
"You went through a lot," he replied. "More than your fair share."   
  
"We both did," she retorted, trying to repress a yawn. "Guess we should catch naps when she does huh? We're gonna be up when she is, that's for damn sure."   
  
Logan chuckled and they settled down to sleep.   
  
Four hours later, true to Max's prediction, Jacquie woke up, wailing. Max heard her daughter's cries and was roused from sleep. She gently pulled herself from Logan's embrace and slipped out of bed, padding across the room. Quietly, she lifted the mewling infant from the cradle and carried her into the nursery. Instantly, the baby's cries quieted.   
  
"You just wanted you momma, huh little one?" Then she noticed the baby turning towards her breasts. "Ah, so you think this is a 24/7 buffet, do you?" Max joked, smiling. She sat down in the rocking chair by the window and unbuttoned her loose blue cotton shirt. She curled her legs, clad in wide grey pants, under her small body, and brought the baby to her now bare breast. Her daughter latched on hungrily and began to suckle. After nearly a week, Max was still trying to get used to this bizarre and amazing feeling. The sensation of her daughter's warm breath on her flesh was overwhelming for Max.   
  
As she rocked them in the chair, Max looked down at her nursing child and began to sing softly, "Baby mine, don't you cry. Baby mine, dry your eyes. Rest your head close to my heart, never to part, baby of mine."   
  
Logan quietly stood in the doorway, having been roused from sleep by his wife's absence, and watched her sing softly to their child. It was an amazing sight to behold.   
  
"Little one when you play, don't you mind what you say. Let those eyes sparkle and shine, never a tear, baby of mine." Max changed the baby's position to her other breast, as had been advised to her in the hospital, and kept singing, "If they knew sweet little you, they'd end up loving you too. All those people who might scold you, what they'd give just for the right to hold you."   
  
Logan walked over to his family and crouched next to Max and Jacqueline, resting his hand on his wife's shoulder, looking lovingly at their child. Max looked at him and they smiled at each other. He smiled at Max and Logan kissed Jacquie's forehead, then let his lips lightly brush Max's exposed flesh and heard her gasp. He smiled again and held out his arms. Max stepped into his embrace, the baby still in her arms, and they began to dance as a unit while she hummed. Her eyes opened wide with surprise when she heard her husband begin to sing one last verse of the song.   
  
"From your head to your toes, you're not much, goodness knows. But you're so precious to me, cute as can be, baby of mine."   
  
Tears shining in her eyes, Max looked down at Jacquie and found her to have fallen back to sleep. They settled her once again in the bassinet and then settled themselves once again back into bed. Only this time, they lit some candles and stripped down. Wrapping themselves in blankets and around each other, Max and Logan happily held each other and listened to the sounds of the city below. As she drifted off to sleep, Max heard Logan sing softly in her ear, "From you're head to your feet, you mean so much to me. Can't find words to express, I love you best, love of my life."   
  
He kissed the nape of her neck and let the sounds of her breathing lull them to sleep.   
  
And for the first time in months, the world was as it should be.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Okay...that MIGHT be the end. I was planning on adding two more chapters, but now one of them feels unnecessary. However, an epilogue might be in serious order here. I'm sorry this A) took so long to get out and B) was so long it had to be split up into two chapters but stuff like that happens I guess. Feedback will determine whether or not I wrote a prologue. Thanks to everyone who read this fic and left me notes telling me how much they loved it. It means a lot.   
  
  



	15. The Air That I Breathe...Still....

Author's Note: This is the last installment in my "Dark Angel" novel "The Air That I Breathe." It has been an amazingly creative experience writing this story, and I loved every minute of it, even those in which I had nasty writer's block. The amount of people who enjoyed this fic was overwhelming. Your constant support and incredible notes kept me writing and made the process all the more enjoyable. I would like to also thank Cameron the Wonder Boy and Chick the Bald for creating such amazing characters for me write and expound upon. I meant no infringement by writing this fic; please don't sue.   
  
Thanks also to Evil Twin, an astounding beta who always made sure she let me know what parts of the fic she liked, disliked, or didn't understand. Girl, you helped make my stories so much better.   
  
And finally, to Lady Callie: sistah girl, words cannot express. Your constant love and support for me and these stories was overwhelming. You are an amazing beta and an even better friend. If nothing else, I'm so glad this story brought us together as friends. You rock!  
  
And now...our final scene...   
___________________________________________________________________________________________________  
  
*If I could make a wish  
I think I'd pass  
Can't think of anything I need*  
  
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here this evening..."  
  
It was nighttime in the city. The sky was full of starlight, twinkling orbs that danced for the lovers. The light of the full moon streamed in through the large windows, luminous and brilliant, creating an eerie beauty along with the candlelight. The rather large crowd was made up of those who loved and were loved by the couple before them. It was a blessed and joyous occasion.  
  
*No cigarettes  
No sleep  
No light  
No sound  
Nothing to eat, no books to read*  
  
The city below was quiet, peaceful. It was a world people were finally beginning to enjoy once again. The bride looked at her parents and smiled. She knew that they, with the help of their friends and comrades, and others like them, the country had emerged from it's most tragic low. There was far less hunger, disease, and poverty than there had been since the Pulse almost forty years prior. Martial law was a thing of the past and the sense of normalcy that had swept its way across the country during this generation was a source of joy for those of the previous, the ones who could remember the squalor and corruption. That their children were now marrying in a time of more prosperity than had been known in forty years was wonderful.  
  
*Making love with you  
Has left me peaceful, warm, and tired  
What more could I ask  
There's nothing left to be desired*  
  
Standing on the concrete roof of the bride's childhood home, framed by an arch of flowers and enough candles to set a small inferno, the lovers stood in profile. The groom, tall and handsome, with defined features, large eyes, and shoulder length black hair (tied in a ponytail for the occasion) was dressed in a tuxedo, a red rose in his lapel, and shiny shoes on his feet. His eyes gleamed in the candlelight, reflecting the light shining from his eyes. His bride, a young beauty of twenty five with incredibly long and thick dark hair and crystal blue eyes like her father, wore her mother's wedding gown, a simple white floor length empire cut dress with a scooped neck and no sleeves. She and her mother, sisters, and female cousins, had sewn hundreds of tiny shimmering beads into the entire dress, which made it sparkle in the candlelight. Similarly, they had attached a train to her mother's wedding tiara, and it too was covered in the sparkly beads. Her hair was piled high atop her crown, accented by the glintingcrown she wore in her hair. Wispy strands fell delicately around her face and neck, from which hung a gold locket, her mother's, a family heirloom. Her hands were clasped in those of her soon-to-be husband's, and it was obvious they only had eyes for each other.  
  
*Peace came upon me   
And it leaves me weak  
Sleep silent angel  
Go to sleep*  
  
"I would now like to ask them to recite their vows. They have chosen to write their own, as sincere and heartfelt expressions of their eternal love and devotion." The minister turned to the groom. "Kieran, if you please."  
  
Kieran O'Doyle took a deep breath and tried to smile through his nerves. It wasn't that he hated public speaking—he was, after all, a broadcast journalist on one of Seattle's nightly news programs. It was that he was determined to make his vows to his beloved perfect. They were surrounded by her entire—and rather large—family. In the front row were her parents, married almost thirty years, with six children, all but Jacqueline adopted. They had been so good to him, especially after his own parents had died in a boating accident two years ago. They had virtually taken him in, made him part of the family, even before he had proposed to their eldest daughter and first born. And what a family he had been taken into—a complex network of aunts, uncles, and cousins. While his betrothed's father was an only child, her mother made up for his lack of siblings. She had a dozen sisters and brothers, all married, all with at *least* three children of their own. Family gatherings like Thanksgiving and Christmas at Casa Cale were all carefully orchestrated events, planned with almost militant precision.   
  
  
This wedding had been no small feat either. Planning it so that her entire family could attend, and arranging to have it held at night atop one of the city's most lavish apartment complexes, Fogle Towers, where Jacqueline had lived until she was eight, had taken months of preparation. And now there they were, all watching him, waiting for him to pledge his love and fidelity to her.   
  
"Jacqueline Eva Gabrielle Cale, I love you beyond words, beyond life itself. You are truly the greatest thing that's ever happened to me. Your unwavering support and unconditional love have given me more strength and courage to follow my dreams and ambitions than you will possibly ever know. I can't imagine my life without you, nor do I want to. You have given me so much that I will never be able to repay you. You gave me love and a family when I lost my own. You gave me safe harbor. You are my rock, my light, my strength." He turned to Case, Jacqueline's cousin and his best man, for the ring. The twenty-three year old son of Tinga and her husband of twenty-four years, Charlie, gladly handed his friend a sparkling gold band. Turning back to his shining bride, Kieran continued. "This ring is a symbol of my everlasting love and devotion. From this moment on, I promise to love you, honor you, cherish you, respect you, comfort you, and care for you. From this moment on, and as long as we both shall live, Jacqueline Cale, with this ring I thee wed." Blinking back tears, Kieran slipped the ring on her finger, fighting the urge to take her in his arms and kiss her that moment. The time for that, he knew, would come.   
  
*Sometimes  
All I need is the air that I breathe   
And to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Yes to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh*   
  
Jacqueline, known to her family as Jackie or Lynn, smiled widely as she felt the cool ring slide onto her finger. It gleamed in the soft light. Still smiling, she looked to her parents, who were fighting back tears of their own. Her mother Max, dressed in a stunning champagne-colored gown that made her look younger than her age of nearly fifty, was seated next to Logan. With salt and pepper hair and matching scruff that somehow did not betray his age of sixty years, and the same twinkling blue eyes as his daughter, the father of the bride sat clutching his wife's hand proudly, dressed in a classic tuxedo. From the look on his face Lynn could tell he couldn't believe she was getting married. She knew he would forever see her as the precocious three year old who loved when he took her for rides in his wheelchair, even though he'd regained the use of his legs long before she was born. She was her father's princess, his first born. And now she was about to make an eternal vow to the man she loved.   
  
"Kieran Francis William O'Doyle, I love you more than words can express." She smiled and cast another quick glance to her parents. "Growing up, I was cynical, and thought the love my parents had for each other was unrealistic and too much like a fairy-tale to be duplicated." Max and Logan grinned, each blinking away tears, knowing how much parts of their lives before Jacqueline, both apart and together, had *not* been like a fairy tale.   
  
Jacqueline continued, "But then I met you." She felt tears come to her eyes. "And all the cynicism I ever had about love and relationships went flying out the window. I knew the moment I laid eyes on you that you were "The Guy". You were everything I wanted and everything I didn't know I wanted and everything I didn't know I was missing. I thought you were talented, funny, ambitious, passionate, creative, caring, compassionate... and yet there was something about you I couldn't put my finger on. But then you let me into your heart and into your life and I came to know your soul. Thank you for loving me and letting me love you. Thank you for teaching me everyday." She took the ring from Brin and Zack's daughter Jacinda, her maid of honor. "This ring is a symbol of my everlasting love and devotion. From this moment on, I promise to love you, honor you, cherish you, respect you, comfort you, and care for you. From this moment on, and as long as we both shall live, Kieran O'Doyle, with this ring I thee wed."   
  
Kieran smiled as he felt his beloved slide the ring onto his finger. He looked deep into her eyes and knew if he looked too long he would lose himself in their depths. Logan had once told him that Lynn had her mother's large eyes, eyes the man admittedly knew he would gladly drown in. Max had told him that Lynn had her father's coloring, so crystal clear and expressive, eyes the woman unashamedly admitted she could fall into. Lynn was so much a combination of both her parents. While her mother was tall, around five-foot-seven, her daughter was closer to Logan's height of six feet. Their daughter was a physical, emotional, and spiritual representation of them as well. She had her mother's long dark hair, her father's eyes and facial features, her mother's lips and feline-like grace, and her father's love for basketball. She rode a motorcycle, like virtually every other member of her mother's family. All but Tinga and Brin owned motorcycles, and that was because their respective spouses owned them. All the children over eighteen owned them as well. They were their own division of the Hell's Angels.   
  
Lynn was strong willed and determined, stubborn and fiercely loyal, a trait inherent to both her parents. She had her mother's smart-ass attitude, and her father's high-minded altruism, which might explain why she had become a public defender and advocate for human rights. Lynn played guitar, taught by her father, and sang. She wrote poetry, like Logan, and had inherited his culinary skills. Like her mother, she was street smart, tough, able to take care of herself in any situation. She was the best of everything that made Max and Logan who they were.   
  
From their front row seats, the Cales watched their oldest daughter marry the love of her life. The pride and joy both felt were overwhelming. Logan held tightly to Max's hand as they watched in happy silence. On either side of Lynn and Kieran were Max and Logan's youngest children, six year old fraternal twins, Jessica and Michael, the flower girl and ring bearer, respectively. Along with Jacinda and Brianna, Zane's oldest, both of whom were like sisters to the bride, stood her other sister, Nicollette, age twenty. The remaining two Cale children, boys Damian and Austin, ages eighteen and sixteen, had been two of Kieran's ushers, and stood beside their older cousin Case, who considered the two his brothers, as he was the only boy child.   
  
Max squeezed Logan's hand and felt a tear fall down her cheek. Logan reached out with his other hand and brushed it away with his thumb.   
  
*Making love with you  
Has left me peaceful, warm, and tired  
What more could I ask  
There's nothing left to be desired*   
  
The minister grinned, "Now that Kieran and Jacqueline have made their vows of love and devotion to each other, in the sight of God, witnesses, and their family, it is my pleasure to present to you, for the first time, by the power vested in me, Mr. and Mrs. Kieran O'Doyle." The assemblage looked at him expectantly and he started. "Oh yes, how foolish of me." He smiled broadly at the excited young lovers. "You may now kiss the bride."   
  
*Peace came upon me   
And it leaves me weak  
Sleep silent angel  
Go to sleep*   
  
Kieran let out a muted "Woohoo" that sent giggles through the crowd, and closed fraction of an inch that separated them, bringing them together. Kieran took Lynn's face in his hands and sweetly kissed his bride, relishing the look of sweet anticipation on her face as she met him to return the kiss. As their lips touched, at first soft and gentle, but then more passionately, and full of joy, their arms enveloped each other.   
  
Jessica and Michael exchanged mischievous glances and exclaimed, "Eeeeeeewwwww!"  
  
Their sister and brother-in-law broke apart, laughing, but not before Max and Logan tried to hush their outspoken youngsters. Lynn smiled at her parents, then extended her hand to Jess. Kieran did the same with Michael and the four retreated back up the aisle, pelted good-naturedly with grains of rice thrown by their nearly one hundred guests. At the end of the aisle, the newly weds shook the rice from their hair and brushed it off of the kids. Then Kieran swept Jacqueline up in his arms and spun them around, kissing her deeply, with a softness and tenderness that was overwhelming.   
  
*Sometimes  
All I need is the air that I breathe   
And to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Yes to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh*   
  
  
Later, at the reception, held in the lavish function hall in the complex, Max and Logan watched as their children and family danced around them. All of Max's siblings, their spouses and children, their dates and friends; Jacqueline and Kieran's co-workers; Original Cindy and her wife of ten years, Blaze; Bling, his wife and their two children; Kendra and the two kids she had with Walter before he died of a heart attack five years prior; and everyone else who had in some way impacted Jacqueline and Kieran's lives. Max and Logan smiled, overwhelmed by the love and happiness that was in the room. They both knew they were truly blessed.   
  
"Well Dad," Max said, sipping her champagne and peering jovially at him over the rim of her glass. "She's married." She swallowed the champagne thoughtfully, watching Logan's face.  
  
Logan grinned and cast a glance at his daughter, who was trying to teach her youngest siblings the *latest* version of the Electric Slide, a dance that just apparently refused to die. "It's pretty incredible," he remarked, taking the glass from his wife and sipping it as well. "It seems like just yesterday I brought you both home from the hospital."   
  
Max nodded, a fieriness creeping into her large dark eyes. "Yeah, ya know; yesterday, twenty-five years ago... same thing." She smiled at him when she saw the loving annoyance cross over his still ruggedly handsome features. Gently, and somewhat apologetically, she caressed his face, her touch familiar and soothing to him. "One down," she remarked.   
  
"And five to go," Logan finished, watching as Jess and Mike stumbled over their own feet and had a great time doing it.   
  
"I think Nicollette will have a ring by Christmas," Max said, pointing slyly to her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend of three years, Jason, who were sitting at a corner table, engrossed in what appeared to be a very intimate and private conversation.   
  
"You think?" Logan asked, incredulously. He groaned, "I won't have finished paying off *this* wedding when the times comes to start paying for hers."   
  
Max chuckled, "I think your wallet can handle it."   
  
Just then, the "Electric Slide 2047 Remix" stopped and Max and Logan became aware that their daughter had apprehended the DJ's microphone. She and Kieran were smiling broadly.   
  
"What are they up to?" Logan whispered to his wife, who could only offer an unknowing shrug.   
  
"Mom, Dad," Jacqueline began. "You guys have done so much for us. You've been so good to us and made this wedding everything we wanted it to be and more. There will never be any sufficient way to pay you back."   
  
"But if you really want to, have your father send you the first bill!" her Uncle Krit called from where he stood with Johnny and Zane and their wives near the bar. Everyone in the room laughed.   
  
Kieran took the mic from his bride, "Aside from giving them money, we thought the next best way to show our gratitude would be like this." He nodded to Case's younger brother Dante, who dimmed the overhead lights. "Please come out here you guys. This is your dance." The crowd began to applaud wildly.   
  
Max and Logan exchanged surprise looks as the spotlight was literally placed on them.   
  
"Did you know about this?" Max hissed as Logan led her out to the dance floor.   
  
"Actually yes, I asked them to make a spectacle of us on *their* wedding day," Logan replied, receiving a slight jab to the arm for his sarcastic comments.   
  
Their daughter and son-in-law came up to them and hugged them. "We love you," Lynn whispered, before taking her husband's hand and walking to the edge of the dance floor, where the crowd had formed a circle.   
  
Soft piano music filled their air. Max smiled as she looked up at Logan. They were playing the song. *Their* song. The one Max and Logan had danced to at their own reception so many years ago. Max had wanted it played at the wedding itself, but Logan had thought somehow the minister wouldn't want a song that mentioned making love to be played during the sacrament.   
  
As the music filled the air, Max and Logan melded into each other's arms, dancing around as they had so many times before. After a time, they were only vaguely aware of the crowd that watched in silence, smiling as they saw the two still looking like newlyweds.   
  
Max and Logan had lived in the new and mysterious world they had wondered about on the night like this one so many years ago. They had experienced the new and exciting (and most likely occasionally dangerous) adventures. They had lived through good times and bad, through times of pain and times of joy, and had come out happier and more content than they had ever imagined. They had six—now, by marriage, seven, and, if Max was correct, soon to be eight—beautiful children, a large extended family, great friends, a nice house in the suburbs, wonderful memories, and many years to come full of many more wonderful memories.   
  
And they could only wish the same for Jacqueline and Kieran. They knew there would be times of pain and times of joy, times of hardship and times of plenty. But, as they danced, somehow Max and Logan knew that once again, everything was going to be all right. As they were living their happily ever after, their oldest daughter was beginning her happily every now.   
  
*Sometimes  
All I need is the air that I breathe   
And to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe  
Yes to love you  
All I need is the air that I breathe...*  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~FIN~  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
That's it everyone. "The Air That I Breathe" has come to an end. I hope you all enjoyed it. Thank you to everyone who read this. I appreciate it more than I can say. I'm planning a prequel, but don't plan on seeing the first chapter any earlier than the first of January, 2002.  
  



End file.
